Transformers: Shadow - Book 1 - Into the Dragon's Realm
by Cylinder-the-Autobot
Summary: G1, post movie - A mysterious crystal leads the defeated Galvatron to believe that his Decepticons can finally conquer Rodimus Prime and his Autobots, but the power inside this gem may be more than what they bargained for when both Autobots and Decepticons alike find themselves in a world unlike their own... as dragons. (OC included)
1. Prologue

Prologue

_I'm coming for you._

The words rang through Cylinder's audios. They had repeated themselves constantly like a record player caught within the groove of a scratched disc. The voice itself was nothing but a hiss from the deepest depths of the Well of All Sparks – reaching out to grab any unfortunate souls that had given in, consuming them in a pit of shadows, where time is lost and everything else is forgotten.

The demonic voices kept calling to the blue robot. They played over and over again within her processor, urging her to give in, but she paid it no mind.

Cylinder sat quietly in her room, thoughts circulating normally, as they should. Though this place was not much, she could at least call it home. Her room acted as a laboratory – buried deep within the planet of Cybertron, home to Transformers, such as herself. Though now, the planet was home to a certain specific group of Transformers: the Autobots.

Caught in a long, devastating war, the Autobots, who strived for freedom and peace, clashed with the Decepticons, who fought for tyranny. Years ago, the Decepticons had taken over Cybertron, forcing the Autobots to live elsewhere, ideally an allied planet, known as Earth. Only a few, higher-ranking Autobots remained hidden on the surface or on the two moons above, preparing to re-take their home. Eventually, they did, but lost many brave lives in the process – lives that never could keep Cylinder the same. The damage both sides of the war suffered was terrible, physically and emotionally destroying even those whom had never shown much of it before. Both sides had lost a great number of soldiers. But what was worse was that they also lost their leaders. Cylinder remembered it well.

The Autobot stood up from her chair and crossed the floor of the lab to the other side, where on the wall hung an old mirror. She peered into it, taking in the large, blue, aerodynamically built frame. She gazed at the gold trim on her wings, the boot-like feet that held her thrusters and tail wings, two of them indicating a large, golden number "5." Her hands reached behind her head as she placed them on two gray handles and pulled them downwards. Out came two, electric blue swords known as "katanas," which were designed and used by Earth inhabitants. As her main weapons, Cylinder fought fiercely and bravely with them. To others, she was not someone to be messed with, and 'bots especially did not want to be the unfortunate sparks at the end of her blade. She may have been a skilled fighter, but to her, it was nothing special. She slid them back into their sheaths and took a look at herself as a whole once more. As a member of one of the most elite Autobot teams in the Universe, Cylinder had to be built for speed and agility. She was a member of the Aerialbots, a group of flying Autobots. She also served others as a part-time medic when needed – though being a true medic was something one was born with, not taught like she was. One last time, she browsed over herself. Though the body before her was something she expected to see, it felt like a complete stranger, rather, a shadow of her former self.

Once, she used to be a proud, energetic, and optimistic Autobot. Once, she would fly over the world below her, proudly brandishing her golden, number "5" tail wings, racing by her peers. Once, she used to fight proudly, with honor, dignity, and willingness. Once, she could easily be identified as a friend to everyone, even those on the other side of the fight. Now, Cylinder was nothing but a saddened, depressed shell, condemned to live like this the rest of her life. What was hard for her to process, though, was how fast her old self disappeared in one day. She would never forget it.

_On Earth, within the walls of Autobot City, the young Autobot Cylinder eagerly waited for a shuttle scheduled to arrive very soon. This vessel was special, carrying not only valuable resources and supplies, but also four of the Aerialbot's friends and comrades – Prowl, Ironhide, Ratchet, and Brawn. She hadn't seen them in months, and could hardly contain her excitement when the massive ship appeared over the horizon. The giddy Autobot bounced up and down in joy until red laser fire shot up from a nearby mountain and pierced the orange armor of the shuttle and an engine, which abruptly erupted in flames, causing the ship to descend. Cylinder frantically activated her long-distance scanners, focusing her optics on the source of the laser fire. Strangely enough, it was another Autobot comrade who was firing. And it was a very stupid comrade, at that._

_ Hot Rod._

_ Why on Cybertron was he firing at an allied ship? Cylinder found the answer soon enough. Decepticons – the Autobots' archenemies – stormed out of the falling ship as it plummeted into the ground; a large gaping hole in its side, all engines now smoking._

_ As much as Cylinder wanted to run for the vessel and help her friends, the impulsive Autobot lurched for the nearest 'Con, swords lashing out of their sheaths as she passed one by. She hit a blue Aerial Decepticon, otherwise known as a "Seeker," named Thundercracker, as soon as he landed. It felt odd to do that, considering she had been somewhat friendly with her air-bound brother, despite his opposing faction. But when they attacked her city, her home, her place of creation, it meant an act of war. Cylinder's sword grazed the tip of the F-15 Eagle's wing as the smaller, quicker F/A – 18 Hornet blazed by. Both blue jets turned and faced each other, charging as soon as they felt ready. The Decepticon fired his lasers as the "Blue Angels" number five jet swung her katanas at him, barely missing. She drew up a face shield and slashed again, narrowly missing the Seeker's head. While her skill with swords was great, her aim was not._

_ Thundercracker spun around, landing a metal foot in Cylinder's side, cracking some of the metal plates there and knocking her back. The Autobot retaliated with a fist that slammed through the glass of his cockpit, which was a terrible place to have it, since it was the only thing between the outside world and very valuable insides, like his Spark, the very life force of all Transformers. _

_ Finishing the fight, Cylinder dug deeper into his center and wrapped her fingers around as many wires as she could possibly grab and yanked. Hundreds of severed wires, followed by bright pink Energon (the Cybertronian equivalent to blood), spilled out of the wound. She activated her thrusters located on her feet and rocketed into the air, yet the Seeker did not follow. He lay there, incapacitated and unable to move. Cylinder took advantage of the wounded Decepticon and pulled out a blaster of her own. She hated using it, and much preferred her swords, but nevertheless, pulled it out anyway. With a carefully guided and hopeful aim, she fired at Thundercracker's open cockpit and exposed wires. A large explosion rippled across the ground and severely cracked his armor. He uttered a desperate cry of pain, and then fell silent._

_ With the Seeker out of the way, Cylinder turned back towards the city and ran._

_ The Battle of Autobot City, at least, that was what it had come to be called, went on for hours. After her fight with Thundercracker, Cylinder served and aided others with the medical support she could offer. But it was hard for her this time. Though medics were not supposed to show emotion when the dead were uncovered, she could not help but break down when two dead Autobots were dragged into a safe zone._

_ Wheeljack – the former Autobot inventor – and Windcharger – the fastest ground-based Autobot – were dragged in with other destroyed machinery. Their deaths hit Cylinder hard, but deep in her spark, she knew she had to keep going._

_ Less than an hour later, another shuttle flew over, this time flooding with Autobots – including their leader himself – Optimus Prime. Cylinder remembered how he had been there when she was first Sparked. She always thought of him as a father – teaching her how to be an effective leader and how to care for others, putting their lives before her own. She looked over to see the great Prime exit the now grounded shuttle and charge for the Decepticons, followed by Autobots Hound, Sunstreaker, and the subgroup known as the "Dinobots," modeled after earth dinosaurs and built for brute strength. As they broke away from him, Optimus attacked his adversary, Megatron – the leader of the Decepticons. The two clashed ferociously, each exchanging vicious blows at each other._

_ The Autobots on the sidelines watched in awe as Optimus Prime fought Megatron almost effortlessly. Then, something bright red and orange caught Cylinder's optics. Hot Rod. The brash, younger Autobot chased after the fight, hoping to help his leader defeat Megatron and earn respect from others. Despite the wiser demands of older 'Bots not to interfere, he ignored them and continued on his path towards the fight._

_ Cylinder's optics quickly locked onto him as she activated a power that, for some odd reason, very few (or maybe only she) possessed. No one knew why, and only a select few actually knew about it, including Hot Rod. She could read minds. She had no idea how, or why, but she could. With this power, she could also directly lock with any machinery, control it, and know about something instantly just by looking at it. She could also talk to the robot without ever moving her mouth. This part of her ability was just like using a radio, but instead, the conversation could be more private. Radios could be traced any time a robot pleased, but with this, she could say anything she wanted to another robot without being detected. It made her invisible to radar, which neither she, nor any other scientist who came into contact with her, could fully understand. She focused back on Hot Rod, and spoke clearly over his own processor: _Don't . . . you . . . dare.

_He slid to a stop and turned to her, but just as quickly turned away._

_ The rest happened so fast. Hot Rod interfered with the fight, only helping Megatron down Optimus Prime with gunshot wounds. The Prime, using every last bit of his strength, threw his weight against Megatron, knocking him off an overhang, far above the ground, and severely damaging him in the process. As soon as that happened, the Decepticon retreated, carrying their dead and wounded with them. Optimus, who fought bravely and saved the city, died hours later, and passed Autobot leadership over to the city commander, known as Ultra Magnus. News then hit that Megatron and many of his soldiers (including Thundercracker), had survived, and were rebuilt by an unknown, universal force. Starscream, the Decepticon Air Commander and Megatron's second in command, was crowned leader of the faction – for a full twenty seconds. Megatron, now called "Galvatron" killed Starscream in a fit of rage, fury, and flat-out insanity. The Autobots, now hopelessly desperate to gain Cybertron back, found that a planet-eating monster, one that was considered to be a myth, began to attack the Transformer's home, dismembering the very body of Primus (the one who gave life to all Transformers – Autobots and Decepticons alike), piece by piece. Cylinder traveled to the doomed planet and fought on the ground, while the remainder of Autobot forces fought within the giant behemoth, now identified as Unicron the Destroyer. The battle raged on, and soon, from within, a faint blue light had begun to glow. Cylinder recognized it in an instant._

_ The Autobot Matrix of Leadership – the very essence of Primus. When a Cybertronian died, their life force, or Spark, went to the Well of All Sparks, located deep inside the Matrix._

_ Unicron frantically jerked his head around as his pain receptors flashed through his head and his body began to feel less and less immobile, stopping only when his gazed rested on Cylinder's. There was something about the blue Autobot that was interesting to him, something that he was not quite sure exactly what she was, that made her different from all of the rest. And from that moment on, she began to hear the horrible voices._

_ I'm coming for you._

Ever since that day, Cylinder would never bee the same. She would never smile unless she was making fun of another 'bot. She would never be perfectly obedient and follow orders like before. She never used her weapons and incredible speed like she used to, and instead relied more and more on her mind abilities. She became rude, depressed, and all-around disrespectful. But the ultimate question was: Did the voices have anything to do with it? Or was it really because she had lost so much in so little time? Her thoughts slowly filed themselves away in her large processor as she gradually became aware of the present once more, facing the same, almost foreign metal body before her again.

This, after all of that, was what was left.

This . . . is who she is.


	2. Chapter 1 - Depressed

Chapter 1 – Depressed

The Autobot leader, adorned in maroon paint and gold flames kept a firm hand over his arm. Beneath the thin, metal plating of the servo was a gaping wound, complete with sparking wires and leaking Energon. He did his best not to pay attention to it as he slowly walked deeper and deeper into Cybertron's vast, multiple levels. He could not remember the last time he had been down here, or the last time he had seen the dark, gray paneling on the walls that surrounded him; the thoughts had been since blocked by the very artifact that made him who he was.

Long ago, before Unicron had almost devastated Cybertron, before Optimus Prime died, he was nothing but a young, screw-loose Autobot named Hot Rod. Racing and running – that was his game, his idea of a good time. Ignoring the authority of others was included in his daily routine. All of that changed in one day.

All he could remember was interfering with the fight that could have ended the War right then and there. But instead, it lead to the great Prime's death, and for a short time, the Autobots were without hope. Despite the reassurance from others that it wasn't his fault, he knew better. It was him. All him. If he had listened to the pleas begging him not to intervene, this wouldn't have happened. None of it would.

But instead, he ended up going on an intergalactic tour, dodging aliens, 'Cons, and demons alike. Even worse, Hot Rod had to face Unicron himself. To top it off, Galvatron, the new Decepticon leader, was there too, holding the very essence of what the Autobots were – the Matrix of Leadership, which he had stolen hours before from the faction.

Forged by the very first Autobots, the Matrix was to be bared by the leader of the Autobots, as it had for many cycles. But long before any of that, before the very thought of the Matrix came into existence, there were other means of the way power came to the robots in the first place. The thoughts flashed before Hot Rod instantly. An alien race, known as the "Quintessons," five-faced, squid-like creatures, created two massive, robotic entities that could change from bipedal robots, to large, metallic planets – Unicron and Primus.

Seeking to build smaller versions of these creations, the Quintessons gave Primus the power to create a "life force", otherwise known as a "Spark," and began to use the planet Transformer as a building ground, in which they named it "Planet Cybertron," though it was more of a factory. The aliens then built two types of robots – a military-based frame for warfare and defense, and a worker-based frame for laboring and entertainment. They used Unicron as a military leader, giving him the power to completely obliterate and destroy enemy planets by physically _eating_ them.

After years of this, the Quintessons, now becoming rather bored with their creations began to make the robots fight each other to the death for amusement. However, unbeknownst to them, Primus and Unicron, their first creations, had over time become sentient beings, Primus from the Spark programming, and Unicron from the pure power of devouring worlds. Primus began to give both the worker robots and the military robots free will as well, while Unicron began planning a rebellion against the cruel slaveholders.

The robots, alongside Primus, The Creator, and Unicron, The Destroyer of Worlds, became united as one, calling themselves "Autobots," which stood for "Autonomous robots." This rebellion became known as The First Great War. The Autobots forged the Matrix form part of Primus' Spark, Vector Sigma, where all life to the Transformers come from, and named a lone military robot, Prima, as their leader. They fought back against the Quintessons, forcing them to abandon Primus' body, or Cybertron, and flee to their home planet, Quintessa.

After the War had ended, Primus agreed to let the Autobots continue to live on him, resting into his normal planetary mode of Cybertron, remaining silent throughout the passing stellar cycles. Unicron roamed the galaxies and travel across the universe, using his power to destroy worlds for his energy. The power and energy of other planets soon began to affect his programming, influencing and manipulating him into thinking that he needed to gain more and more power with each passing day. Eager to satisfy this new hunger, the Destroyer sought to take the Matrix form the Autobots' current leader, and use it for his own purposes. But Primus refused to let it happen.

Enraged by this, Unicron attacked Cybertron, plunging the planet and the Transformers on it into the War with Unicron. The Autobots used the Matrix's power against the Destroyer, trapping him in his planetary mode and banishing him to the far reaches of the universe – far, far away from Cybertron, and thus developing the Destroyer's fear of the Matrix and its power. But his influence didn't stop there. Many Autobots, mostly the military types, became interested in Unicron's thinking of power and infinite control. Soon enough, a group of rogue Autobots, now calling themselves "Decepticons," led a rebellion against the helpless Autobots and their government, sparking the Second Great War. This War raged on for years, and even though it went trough some drastic pauses, it still had not ended.

Hot Rod swallowed deeply at the thought of the Matrix's history, and the War itself. Unicron had eventually gained enough power and traveled back to Cybertron, this time intent on destroying it. He had finally begun to understand the history when the much stronger and more powerful Galvatron had attacked him. They fought fiercely, as the Decepticon managed to get his hands around the younger Autobot's neck. At that moment, Hot Rod managed to grasp the Matrix that was hanging from a chain around Galvatron's own neck. The power of the artifact plunged through his circuits, transforming him into the new Autobot leader – Rodimus Prime. His instant burst of strength helped him in throwing Galvatron into the deepest depths of space. Then, using the Matrix and its infinite power, Rodimus tore apart Unicron's circuits from the inside, out, severing his head from the body and forcing the body to explode, leaving nothing but Unicron's head to float about Cybertron's atmosphere.

At first, many Autobot's were not sure what to think. They were either in shock or disbelief when they found out that Hot Rod, the completely irresponsible and brash, young Autobot, became the leader of the faction and the Matrix-bearer. It especially enraged Cylinder, an Autobot medic and flyer, when she heard the news. She had already lost so much recently, and him becoming the leader was just adding fuel to the fire.

In addition to that, Cylinder and Rodimus had never truly saw optic-to-optic, no matter the situation, which was why the leader was so quiet and thoughtful on his way down to her lab. Indeed, he was quite nervous, but there was really nothing he could actually do. He had always trusted her with repairs, and would never let any other medic fix his injuries but her. In return, she would either silently fix him, or insult him on how he received the wound. "Always stupid, always unconfident," she had said. "Polish a turd, it's still a turd," she would quote from her favorite human comedian. Yet despite all of that, he continued on his way down the trail to her lab.

He knew well that if he was not careful, he could have easily gotten lost down there, forever wandering the seemingly endless tunnels of Cybertron. But thankfully, his routine trips to the place helped him memorize exactly where he needed to go. The door blended in well with the walls; the only hints of its being were the bolts riveted into the practically invisible gray hinges on the wall paneling. Quietly, Rodimus lifted his good arm and tapped a few times on the door. Almost instantly, the tall, blue Autobot appeared within the doorframe, arms crossed and face neutral. Rodimus nodded at Cylinder, who kept a blank face in return.

"What?" She asked, face still unchanged. Without saying anything, the Autobot leader lifted his damaged arm. The sparking wires spoke for themselves. Cylinder's gaze drifted towards the injury, them back to the Prime.

All Rodimus had to do was think of what he was going to say, and Cylinder's mind-reading abilities would do the rest. _Can you fix it?_

"I can," was her response, "But I don't have to."

"Please, Cyl," he responded aloud.

"Don't call me that, you know I hate that."

"Everyone calls you that."

"Everyone _used_ to call me that," she pointed flatly, now clearly irritated with him (not like she ever was not, though). She leaned against the doorframe, crossing her legs and averting her gaze from the Autobot in front of her to her own hand.

"Cylinder, will you _please_ fix it?" He begged quietly, but surely.

If Cylinder could have rolled her optics, she would have, "Fine," she gestured over to a medical table inside the room, where Rodimus sat down quietly. "Although . . . I have to question your medic choice. First Aid's a great medic too, ya know."

"You know I've always trusted you and you alone for any repairs." Why Rodimus only trusted Cylinder was a complete mystery to other Autobots. It certainly was not because he liked her, as demonstrated by their heated public arguments, but rather more of the fact that Cylinder was very delicate and careful with repairs, and the Autobot leader was not a huge fan of rough treatment and painful repair jobs.

"At least First Aid is on the surface," Cylinder refuted, pulling out a medical tool designed for reattaching wires. Rodimus fell silent as he held up his arm for her to repair. "And exactly _how_ did you get this?" She asked, cutting fringed wires back and reconnecting others.

"Blurr and I were involved in a target practice, when one of his shots went haywire and nailed me in the arm."

The slightly taller Autobot made a small snort and shook her head, "Two things: First off, the problem with fast 'bots, when it comes to guns, their aim sucks."

"Like yours?" He smirked.

Obviously not taking it as an insult, Cylinder spoke again, "I can aim better with swords, not with guns," she continued. "Just don't do that kind of stuff with him unless you're racing. Second: dumbass."

"Why thank you," he groaned, yet did his best to keep a smile on his face plate, "You know, you're lucky I'm forgiving – otherwise I would have stripped you of your rank the first time you called me something like that, _Lieutenant _Cylinder." The Aerialbot frowned, but continued without another word.

The next few minutes were composed of nothing but silence, except for the occasional whirring and buzzing of Cylinder's welding torch against Rodimus' arm. The repair was nearly finished, but the maroon Autobot was becoming far beyond antsy. The medic's silence was only making things worse. He decided to bring up a question that he had been long awaiting answers for.

"What happened to you?" He asked, pulling his hand away from hers.

"What do you mean?"

"Don't think I don't know depression when I see it."

His words filed themselves away inside Cylinder's vast processor, as she spoke again, "I have no idea what you mean."

"You know _exactly_ what I mean, Cylinder," he replied sternly, "You're clinically depressed." He glared into her optics, not caring what mind games she was about to play; whether it be mind reading or controlling, he could have cared less care.

Remaining emotionless, Cylinder sighed gently, meeting his firm gaze, "You shouldn't diagnose a medic. Besides, you have no actual proof that I'm depressed."

Rodimus shook his head in denial, "I was there, remember?"

"What?"

"I was there when everything for you . . . changed."

"Uh-huh, sure you were."

"Cylinder, I remember when Silverbolt told you to investigate the site of the crashed ship. I remember your screams of terror after you stepped inside. You were frantically calling their names, screaming for them to come back. I remember _vividly_, Cylinder, you were clutching his lifeless body, repeatedly calling his name. And after that, you just . . . changed."

"How so?"  
"You became rude, snotty, and, frankly, flat-out mean. I remember when lots of 'bots absolutely loved you, when you were friends with everyone. Now, it's like no one knows you anymore. Why, just this cycle, Jazz and I were talking about you and your problems."

"And . . ."

Rodimus' mind did the rest. Leaning closer, he spoke slowly, "Take a look for yourself." Cylinder did as she was told and peered into his thoughts, looking for the one he had stored just for her to find. The words and images appeared before her, as if she was actually there.

_"I'm telling ya, man," _Jazz's saddened voice came over Cylinder's audios, _"It's like I don't even know her anymore. Ever since the others died, she hasn't been the same. I miss her. Cyl was always one of the most optimistic 'bots on base, now all she does is sulk inside her lab all day back on Cybertron."_

The words shook Cylinder, causing her to pull herself away from Rodimus' thoughts. She tried desperately to think of something else, but the thought remained with her. Jazz had been one of her closest friends. He never once did anything to harm her, always promising that he would be there for her if she truly needed him. In fact, he had been there when Cylinder had first come online and into existence. He had been there during her first moments in life. For him to say that only hurt the blue Autobot even more.

"He wanted you back," Rodimus said, pulling her from her trance, "He wanted the _old_ you back."

Everything the Autobot leader had said earlier was true – all true. After the Decepticons had attacked Autobot City, Cylinder had completely lost track of the shuttle carrying the four Autobots expected to arrive that day. When she arrived back in the city to help with repairs, her commanding officer, Silverbolt, had ordered her to investigate the crashed ship the Decepticons had used to infiltrate the city's perimeter. Eagerly, and somewhat worriedly, the young and energetic flyer charged over to the crashed site at Mach 3 speeds, assuming that the four Autobots, Prowl, Brawn, Ironhide, and Ratchet, were being held down in the prison cells beneath the bay of the ship, as it had been completely taken over by enemy forces. However, that was not the case.

Cylinder stepped inside the shuttle's gaping hole and casually strolled in, expecting to see the door to the brig open with four cuffed Autobots inside. What she saw first, though, was absolutely devastating. Before her lied the body of Brawn, face down in a pool of Energon. Cylinder raced to his unresponsive shell and scanned it for life. Nothing. She turned the body over. The short, strong Autobot's hollow chassis had a single, large gunshot wound through the shoulder, which had completely severed some of the main cables that led from his Spark to the rest of the body. The Autobot medic was left speechless. Unquestionably, a shot of this size had to belong to Megatron, but how would only one kill Brawn? Sure, Megatron's shots caused very fatal injuries, but on Brawn? He was practically indestructible – one of the strongest and sturdiest Autobots around. What hurt Cylinder even more though, was the fact that there was nothing she could do about it. Brawn was dead, and he was not coming back.

Cylinder moved towards the control center, beginning to sob weakly as she came across two other dead bodies, these ones showing extreme sign of decay and rust already. Everything on them had faded to a neutral grey. Ironhide, one of the toughest Autobots in the universe, had not only suffered multiple gunshot wounds, but was also missing half of his head! The remaining Energon in his body was leaking profusely from the wounds and onto the floor. The other 'Bot was Ratchet, who, like Ironhide, had suffered many gunshot wounds across his body, mainly the torso. The only difference was that the former medic's head was still completely intact. Cylinder was shaking terribly as she bent down to the gruesome scene to see what help she could be, but, like Brawn, both Autobots' Sparks had extinguished, possibly long before the shuttle had even come close to Earth's atmosphere, let alone the solar system itself.

As much as Cylinder wanted to throw kicks into the ground and slam her fists into the wall in a violent flurry of rage, the Autobot could only sit to mourn in shock and disbelief over the loss of her three fallen comrades – friends who had been there for her since she was born. All it took though was one turn of her head to make everything she ever knew shatter and fall apart.

Lying in the corner of the ship's bay was the fourth Autobot, Prowl. Cylinder scrambled over to him, scanning the body for life. She panicked when her scanners turned up negative. No Spark. No energy signature. Like everyone else aboard the ship, save Cylinder, he was dead. Megatron, or Galvatron, for that matter, had spared no one. This only increased Cylinder's fury. If the Autobot could cry, she would have.

"No," she glanced around the ship's bay, now entirely sobbing and shaking hysterically. "No . . ." she repeated louder, reaching her Energon-covered hands out for Prowl's. Her right hand grabbed his right, while her left cradled his head and the rest of his lifeless frame. Cylinder had never trusted anyone more than him. He had taught her so much, had stuck up for her when others tried to put her down, had done his best to protect her when she had no idea how to fend for herself – and she took it all for granted. Never before had she realized how precious life really was, and how much one should embrace it every chance they got.

Still holding the body, the young Autobot finally let the pain and anger that welled up inside her out. "NO!" She cried, not caring who heard, "Please, for Primus' sake, come back! We can't afford to loose you guys! Ironhide, Brawn, please, don't be dead." No response from either of them. "Ratchet, please! I _need_ your teachings, your advice. How else am I supposed to get by?" Nearby Autobots who had heard her began to file inside the shuttle. Cylinder remained completely oblivious to them. Still holding the dead body of Prowl, she uttered her last words to him, letting her own self go with them, hoping that at least Prowl could hold onto that memory of her within the Well. "Please, Prowl, come back. The world needs you. The Autobots need you. _I_ need you."

Cylinder shook herself from the painful thought. Ever since that moment, she vowed never to be the same. She was barely sure how she even made it this far without them. Then again, she never really thought about it anymore. It was Rodimus' words that had brought the painful memories back to her.

"I mean, ever since that, you were never the same. After their funerals, you started running around claiming that you were hearing voices in your head. Everyone thought you had finally gone off the deep end," Cylinder reconnected optic contact with him, realizing that she had tuned out most of his words in exchange for her agonizing memories. "I understand that you miss them – really, I do. But, Cylinder, you have to let it go. 'Bots die, there's nothing we can do to stop that." Rodimus sighed lightly, hoping to pull Cylinder from her deep thought, but only angering her more.

"Shut up!" She cried, "Honestly, you have no fraggin' idea what it's like to loose someone you care about!" She slammed that last of the leader's arm paneling back into place none to gently, turned, and stalked back to the chair in the far corner of the room, sulking and sobbing once more. Rodimus winced at the pain, but accepted her outburst, turned, and headed for the door quietly.

"Cylinder, I know you don't want to hear this, but I _do_ care about you, just like all of the other Autobots. Part of being a leader is making sure that his subjects are well taken care of and that their needs are met. I'm only trying to help. Look, if you ever need someone to vent to, I'm here. You know where to find me." Without saying another word, he left, the door closing behind him with a loud slam.

The Autobot could hardly believe how much he had matured since he became leader. However, it still did not motivate her enough to change her mind towards him. She looked down at the floor, left dirty and uncared for due to her extreme laziness. She sighed deeply and placed a hand on her helm. She rubbed against the dark blue and gold paneling of the helmet as the voices started back up again. Finally done taking it for the week, she stood and said firmly, to herself, "Get out." The voices had been nothing but trouble for her. They were the reason she was so saddened and miserable.

With that thought, she turned back towards a far corner of her room. In that corner sat a large platform-like bed. I glowed blue with pure energy – a Berth. Cybertronians used these every now and then in order to "sleep" and recharge their systems. Cylinder sat down and curled into a tight ball, powering down her optics and body for recharge. Now all she could do was rest and let sleep take over.


	3. Chapter 2 - Broken Faction

Chapter 2 – Broken Faction

Chaar. Somewhere, buried deep within the far reaches of the universe, the tiny planet floated about – without direction, without purpose. Despite its core, or, what little of a core it had left, the planet looked like nothing more than a rock, wandering aimlessly about space. The outermost layer was thickly covered in most areas with ash and soot, completely charred and in some places burned through, hence the name. The planet was without any natural resources, any oxygen, or any means of survival. It was lifeless and unable to support any living being. No species could walk its ashen, worn-out, half-metallic, half-dirt grounds and live. But its death was the inhabitants' responsibilities. The planet used to be a hot spot for battles waged long before, when beings used to walk its plains, but wiped each other out with one devastating explosion. Since then, no species could thrive there.

Except for one – and not even that species could hold out much longer.

Due to its lack of resources, the beings that now walked the surface of Chaar had grown rather weak and were dying off slowly. Hardly any days were filled with activity; instead, the inhabitants would sit still all day in order to conserve as mush energy as they could.

This was what was left of the Decepticons. After they were exiled from Cybertron, the faction was reduced to scrap, forced to scavenge and claw their way up for everything they once had. They had been reduced to nothing by the very 'bots that strived for peace and equality.

Amidst the suffering, in the small capital city of New Kaon, sat the leader of the Decepticons himself – Galvatron. The purple-shelled leader stared quietly into space, back turned to the city, lost in thought. He sat upon a tiny, scarp-metal throne piled together by whatever his subjects could find. The leader focused his optics on a tiny makeshift-landing pad in front of him. His troops that he had sent out earlier should be returning soon.

Five troops, desperately low on Energon like the rest of the Decepticons, were sent to search for they very resources that kept them alive. The fate of their faction rested in those five troops' servos. And some Decepticons needed it more badly than others. Injuries needed to be repaired and troops needed food. So where were they? Impatiently, Galvatron turned himself around to face New Kaon.

It was not much. The tallest building could barely reach the height of a simple Combiner team. Most buildings, like Galvatron's throne, had been pulled together from scrap metal and dirt. Their dull metal surfaces glinted briefly when a random sun shone over the surface of the planet, but returned to their normal dullness once the sun disappeared behind the mountains in the far distance. The buildings were mainly used for intelligence and medical purposes, but not even the supplies inside were sufficient enough for adding any help to the already dying robots. Hardly any power that made light flowed through the underground wiring, making it almost impossible to see at times. The only true light the planet had lied in its tiny, dying core. It was just large enough for Galvatron to fit in, but its size continued to decrease, week-by-week. To the right of him, he focused on the steep valley where an explosion had once been. The crater now served as shelter grounds for the Decepticon soldiers. On the left sat barren plains, compiled of dust and more scrap metal.

The Decepticon leader lowered his head in defeat. Even he had to admit that the living conditions for his soldiers were a bit ridiculous. If he could, he would have attacked Cybertron, or Earth again, in order to retake the land which at one time belonged to them, where it was rich and full of the resources that they needed, but he never had enough energy to pull his troops together and fight. It was very rare now if any Decepticon won a battle against the Autobots, let alone came out unharmed. But the more they attacked, the more casualties there were, and the more Energon was wasted.

The medics, who worked endlessly, had come up with one simple solution to the attacks: it was not worth it. Not even if there was a fresh pile of Energon in the open – with something like that sitting out there, all processed and ready for consumption, the chances of Autobots being close by were very high. Their strategy was simple; keep attacking the Decepticon resources until they were run dry.

Galvatron heaved an almost psychotic laugh (normal for someone with his programming) but then sighed and shut off his optics in an attempt to recharge. He immediately flickered them back on when he heard footsteps behind him. He tensed, placing his left hand on the large yellow cannon attached to his right arm. It activated slowly, and he listened to the whirring sound of it booting up, anticipating an Autobot attack – most probably from Rodimus Prime or Ultra Magnus . . . or that idiot, Cylinder. Really, what was her deal? The two robots had met before, back when he was known as Megatron. He had never seen or fought such a fiercer fight next to his battles with Optimus Prime.

That day they met; he had successfully captured not only the Autobot leader, but many of the Autobot soldiers as well. He powered up his fusion cannon to execute them, aiming it at Optimus Prime's head, first. Unfortunately, he had never taken into account that Prowl, the Autobot second in command, had let a young Cylinder watch the full battle undercover. With no real training whatsoever, she stopped him from shooting the Prime's head off. Even though she was not very strong, her speed proved to be an advantage over him, allowing her to find and hit Megatron's weak points, which evidently ended the fight. Starscream shot her in the back after she had immobilized the Decepticon leader after the fact. But somehow, even with a clear shot through her spark chamber, the persistent flyer managed to survive. It was as if she had something else in her that kept her online, as if she was not a true Transformer, but neither Megatron, nor Galvatron, could ever crack that.

By now the footsteps had reached his tiny throne. The Decepticon leader could easily make out the heavy venting of the mech behind him – it definitely was not Cylinder, nor was it any other Autobot or assassin, for that matter. The mech spoke, making Galvatron relax.

"Mighty Galvatron?" The voice quivered weakly, followed by the shaking of rusty metallic joints. Clearly, the mech had been running, or flying, to tell Galvatron something. It sounded scratchy and tired, as if the mech was ready to fall into stasis. He, too, was low on Energon. Galvatron rose from his throne, and turned to face the mech behind him. A taller, and also purple Decepticon stood before Galvatron. Cyclonus stiffly saluted his leader, before venting another gust of air. He looked tired, as if he had not seen a recharge berth in months. His armor was dented in several areas – probably from fighting others over the little Energon brought back from previous scouting missions. The leader eyed his second in command's dented armor, and then focused his optics on the two sharp spikes that jutted out of his helmet. Why did Unicron have to reformat his body with something like that? Galvatron had shared a sense of sympathy for Cyclonus' interesting build. After all, both were built and reprogrammed by the same being.

"What is it?" Galvatron finally asked, locking optics with the Decepticon before him.

"It's . . . Scourge. His team has returned from their scouting mission." Galvatron glanced over Cyclonus' shoulder to the landing pad, where four blue spacecraft and a darker blue Decepticon now landed. Scourge's team consisted of himself, Soundwave, the Decepticon communications officer, and three Sweeps. The Decepticon tracker landed softly and transformed before meeting optics with Galvatron. Scourge's wings drooped a little. His expression grew worried, and his mouth twisted into a fearful frown. Clearly, something had gone wrong.

Galvatron stepped forward and greeted the blue Decepticon casually. Both robots nodded and stood awkwardly in silence. Scourge positioned his optics away from his leader's gaze, and instead fixed them on a nearby peace of scrap metal that lied on the ground, never to be picked up. His finger digits twitched nervously, and his feet tapped anxiously. The four Decepticons behind him shifted uncomfortably as well. Even Soundwave, who lacked the standard and basic feelings and emotions did his best to avoid the demanding glare Galvatron was giving the others mechs.

Growing impatient with the awkward silence, Galvatron immediately demanded answers out of Scourge. Evidently, their mission had failed, but the leader wanted somebot to cough up what had happened. "Well?" He asked harshly. Scourge cringed at the words that hung over him, like a dark shadow that followed him wherever he went. The tension of the moment was getting to him as he reluctantly responded.

"Well, you see, mighty Galvatron . . . we _did_ find Energon. We pulled it from the core of a dying sun," Scourge spoke quietly, without any courage or confidence.

Irritated with the lack of an answer, Galvatron pushed the conversation forward, "And?"

"The Sweeps were carrying the cubes, and Soundwave was working on the calculations inside my cockpit. That's when an Autobot ambushed us." Scourge shifted uncomfortably when Galvatron took another step forward, "She just . . . came out of the blue. We never picked her up on radar . . . she just came . . ."

Galvatron sighed with irritation, "Mm-hmm, and let me guess . . . this femme was the Aerialbot known as Cylinder?"

Scourge knew that name too well. Other Decepticons did, too. Though she was not entirely well known by Decepticons throughout the galaxy, Cylinder was still a 'Bot to be feared. While they hated to admit it, most of their Energon-scouting missions ended in failure because of her. No matter the size or number of explorers in one group, Cylinder was always there to foil their plans. It was a simple plan that Rodimus Prime had – destroy the Energon, run the Decepticons dry, make them surrender and plead for it. It was the best battle strategy – no casualties for the Autobots, but plenty for the Decepticons. It was brutal and cruel without doing too much of the dirty work.

"I believe so," was Scourge's only response.

Galvatron chuckled, almost as if he had gone completely insane (which seemed to be the norm for many Decepticons on Chaar nowadays). He pivoted on his peds and proceeded back to his throne. Sitting down, he looked back at his troops, taking in the words that were just said; now completely bursting into laughter. Cyclonus had no idea what was so funny about this . . . but accepted the fact that his leader would probably soon have large outbursts. "'I believe so.' Heh – can you believe that?" He directed the question towards Soundwave, who had been silent the whole time – silent, yet obedient.

"Yes, lord Galvatron," his deep mechanized voice sounded. It was cold; calm, with no emotion – just an empty shell filled with knowledge and indifference, yet complete loyalty. Soundwave would never abandon the Decepticons, no matter what compelled him to do so. Even if the Autobots' intentions were clearer and more valiant than those of the Decepticons', he still remained a strong loyalist to the faction he had been with since the beginning of it all.

"Hmph," Galvatron smiled insanely, "How, Cyclonus, how? Can you please explain that to me?"

"Sir?" The purple jet asked confusingly.

"How is it that nearly every mission I send out comes back empty-handed, usually due to the hands of the Autobots – let alone one _single_ Autobot? How is it that no 'bot, not even my past self as Megatron, could not defeat her? How has she survived everything that we've thrown at her and hasn't dropped? Why can't we defeat anybot, for that matter? Why can't anybot, not even our combiners, stand up against the Autobot threat?" He started to raise his voice, "What good is a team if they cannot defeat even a single Autobot?"

A Sweep spoke up, "In our defense, sir, we are desperately low on Energon – the Autobots have-"

It was a fatal mistake. Galvatron shot the Sweep. The spark of the soldier instantly faded, and the lifeless shell came crashing to the ground. Silence abruptly filled the room until Galvatron spoke again, "Unless any of you want to end up like him," he addressed the troops before him, except Cyclonus, "You would be wise to leave – now."

Scourge and the two remaining Sweeps saluted and fled, probably to the tiny, makeshift training area, where other Decepticons would usually fight over small clusters of Energon cubes as training. They stumbled over each other, fighting to see who could get the farthest from Galvatron first. Naturally, Scourge took the lead with ease.

Galvatron turned back to Soundwave, who had stayed in place and disobeyed the order. Disappointed, he sneered at the communications officer, "Why did you challenge my order?" He stood firmly and stared down the emotionless troop. The feeling to him was like staring at an empty metal shell that had been rusted in place for years.

Without uttering a word, Soundwave raised his hand. He placed it on a small button on his shoulder. Almost instantly, his glass chest compartment opened, revealing several tape-looking shells, each of them bundled safely together inside. All of them sported different colors from each other, and they all varied in size. One, black, white, and red in color, shifted from where it was nestled. "Laserbeak: eject," Soundwave commanded firmly. The Cassette flew out of the glass and metal home, and took the shape of a metallic condor. It buzzed about happily over Galvatron's head, and made a gentle landing on the leader's arm. While rather primitive and unable to talk, Laserbeak was truly obedient, just like the Decepticon who kept him safe. Calmly, the bird opened a small compartment in his back, revealing a small cluster of purple crystals – shards from a damaged Energon cube. The energy inside the small shards still circulated thorough them powerfully.

Galvatron stood in bewilderment at the small cluster. For Decepticons – this had been an achievement. The leader looked at Cyclonus, who was equally shocked, then back at Soundwave, "How?"

"Laserbeak saved Energon remnants during attack. He brought them back before the remaining supply was completely destroyed." At that point, Galvatron picked up the shards and clutched them tightly in his large hand. Laserbeak returned to tape form, tucking himself in his rightful place inside Soundwave's compartment next to his fellow "Cassetticons," as they had been called. The blue Decepticon did everything in his power to protect the other cassettes inside, putting their lives before his own. In return, they provided plenty of extra firepower when fighting. Though that did mot help them much now.

Galvatron was struck with sudden realization – fuel. Fuel to use in order to find more fuel. _If you want something done right, you might as well do it yourself, _he thought. The Decepticon leader looked at the shards, spark pulsating wild with insanity. He could not remember the last time he had consumed so much of the rich energy, thinking of its taste, its flavor as he drank the Energon, practically inhaling it. The glowing liquid tasted sweet. It was still warm as if it had just been harvested from where it came. Galvatron felt his dormant control systems power-up as the warm, thick fluids filled his tanks that had been empty for so long. In order to save as much energy as possible, the Decepticons would shut off many controls and functions, such as navigation, weaponry, or battle computers. At least it would keep their chances of survival higher. It never helped much in training, though. Soundwave turned on his heel and left without another word, leaving Cyclonus and Galvatron alone.

The Decepticon leader finished off the Energon, swallowing it slowly to ensure that everything had been consumed. Alive and refreshed, he turned towards Cyclonus. The latter acknowledged his leader and strode forward with glee, "We must thank Soundwave and the Cassetticon for preserving some Energon. But, may I ask, Mighty Galvatron – why did you consume it all for yourself? No that I am . . . upset, or anything," he laughed nervously, "I just . . . wanted to know . . . what was the purpose?"

"I think it's time I took initiative, Cyclonus. For too long I have sent my soldiers to find Energon, but never once have I done it myself. If we are to ever win this war, we _need_ this energy. I feel that deep down in my processor, something will change us all. I just need to find it, and I feel that something is telling me to go now."

Cyclonus was shocked. Galvatron had just consumed enough Energon to fill his tanks, and he wanted to go on some universal journey? Alone? "No, Galvatron, not without a loyal soldier to help you. I mean, what if another Autobot ambushes _you_? You _do _remember what happened the first time you encountered Cylinder, right?"

Galvatron sighed. He looked away quietly, nodding in agreement, "I know. But, Cyclonus, I need to do this myself. I don't know how long I'll be gone or if I'll ever return – the Decepticons of Chaar need a strong leader, and I know you're the perfect candidate and second in command for that job. Besides," he whispered carefully into the second's audio, "Scourge can hardly lead the Sweeps. Let us not think about what it would be like if he led the entire faction. I mean, really – can you imagine?"

Considering this, Cyclonus nodded obediently, "Yes, Mighty Galvatron, I will lead with the power and the authority as you do. Good luck on your journey. May Primus be with you," he gestured towards the vacant landing pad, where Galvatron approached silently.

"Thank you, Cyclonus," his deranged laugh began to start up again as he fired a single shot from his fusion cannon into space before propelling himself upwards into the thick blackness of the universe. Something had been telling him to go, something wanted him to find something – something that my change the universe forever.

Space, even to advanced beings such as Cybertronians, was a hard thing to understand. It constantly moved, changed, expanded, and grew. New stars and solar systems and galaxies were born every day, varying in size, shape, and the matter contained inside. Each galaxy had something unique that belonged to it. Whether it was a miraculous display of colors and light, or a dazzling show from a twinkling array of colorful stars. Even the darkest matter and energy of black holes and violent planetary formations had their share of beauty.

Galvatron stared at the magnificence of several comets passing by. Their icy tails streaked the space above him and made it rain down a sparkling collection of frost. It was beautiful, peaceful. Like Chaar, these comets had not yet found an orbital path around some sun, and simply wandered about the endless vacuum – no destination, no goal – just freedom. The beauty and wonder of it all actually made the insane Decepticon leader almost completely at peace. He was calm here. He could remain here the rest of his life without ever having another care in the universe, but his own processor shook him from those thoughts.

He had to stay focused; he had to stay on the task at hand. He still felt that there was something inside him, urging him to go on. Even when his internal systems flashed and warned him on how low his Energon levels were, there was always something else to change his concerns. It was like something was controlling his mind, like something was making his body do everything, while the leader was still conscious and aware of it, even being given the option as to whether or not to continue. It was in his programing, though, to accept what this unseen force was telling him to do.

Finally, after his fuel tanks had dragged him as far as they could go, and his energy levels sputtered out their last huffs of power, Galvatron gave in and turned away from the force that was originally moving him, and instead obeyed his own systems. He needed rest, or at least, something to help him recharge. He now understood why his troops would take as long as they did to find Energon – it was hard. Not once in his long, tiresome journey had he found a single hit of the glowing purple substance, or anything that he could use to form the Energon, either.

Galvatron landed gently on the surface of a red planet. The Decepticon leader had never seen this planet before, taking the vast, dusty plains of the barren world. It had no plant life, no water, no metal; it was just an empty and lifeless shell of red dust and craters, similar to Chaar. It was much like the moons he had visited before in his lifetime – dry, rocky and with little atmosphere. Every step he took would kick up dust that floated about like a ghost. The purple Decepticon eventually found a small crater where he could rest for a while, and hopefully recharge his systems in order to help him get back to Chaar before he lost its faint energy signature. He shut off his blood-red optics and let his systems calm themselves as he slowly drifted into a well-deserved recharge.

Galvatron was brought back online by a sharp beeping noise in his audios. His radar went crazy as the Decepticon leader looked nervously around, half-expecting an Autobot to be nearby. Ever since he had landed on Chaar, he always had a feeling that something was watching him, daring him to make the next move, preparing to strike but never actually doing it. A phantom chill made the wires inside his spinal strut glitch. It made his whole body shake with insecurity.

Powering up his cannon, Galvatron fired a warning sign ahead of him, to show whatever was around that he meant all business when it came to fighting. But rather than a return of fire, he received yet another warning ping on his radar. Deciding to figure out what energy signature had shown up, he cautiously rose and stepped forward, following the path of the signature. The loud beeping noise inside his processor began to put an edge on Galvatron's patience. The frustrated Decepticon leader growled with irritation as he continued to walk; the annoying noise grew louder and louder.

There was always something about loud, sharp noises that annoyed the leader to no end. After being reprogrammed by Unicron, he was placed under mind control, becoming a slave – subject to the Destroyer's will. When he did not comply with a command, the planet-sized Transformer would send out high-pitched noises that only Galvatron could pick up, like a dog. The pain of those noises hurt, and caused him more insecurity and insanity every time he heard the dreadful sounds.

Galvatron knew he could not make it much longer as he impatiently turned around to search for the source of the signature. Now this was becoming dreadfully annoying. Everything began to overwhelm his thought process. Each beep and ping grew louder and occurred more often, signaling Galvatron that he was close to the energy signature but also blocking his central thoughts in the process. His circuits began to twitch with anxiety as he frantically dug about the surface of the dusty red planet. His thought diodes were now on the verge of giving out. The Decepticon leader cried out in desperation as the noise screamed in his audios. He crouched in pain, desperately trying to rid himself of the horrible noise. The world around him was spinning dreadfully fast. He began to loose consciousness from the overwhelming diodes that swarmed his systems and central computers. He knew full well that it wasn't just the beeping that had to do with it, though. It had to also be from the lack of Energon in his systems. If only he had not listened to he strange feelings and voices telling him where to go, he would not be in this mess.

Then, suddenly, everything stopped. The pain in Galvatron's systems vanished. Everything returned to normal. Apparently, his own metal body had dragged him to the source of the energy signature, because his radar and stopped beeping and his thought diodes began to right themselves and work in order. It was odd, though, how the energy signature was not a Cybertronian, or an alien ship, nor another alien species in distress, or anything of that nature.

Placed before Galvatron was a large, crystalline substance. It was light blue and gave off an electric-blue glow. Its soft, warm energy countered the Decepticon leader's harsh, cold personality. The crystal was not very large, but the energy he could see moving inside it was practically infinite, if not, unstable. One look and Galvatron knew exactly what it was.

Energon.

But this Energon was unlike any other kind he had seen before. Sure, Energon had come in many different forms and appearances, but this piece before Galvatron was unique. Most energy from a standard piece Energon was composed of calm energy, soft, easy to use, and great for many jobs. Cybertronians used it not only for food, but also for daily tasks, carrying-out work, and the main source of power for all things on Cybertron and in spacecraft. This, however, looked hard, packed with uncontrollable and quite volatile energy. He knew that it must have been there a long time. Its surface was untouched and perfect, despite its small size. It must have been hard to grow for all this time.

Carefully, Galvatron lowered himself to examine the substance further. He grabbed a small piece of a shard that looked ready to be picked like a ripe grape on a vine. The blue Energon crystal glowed brightly and aggressively as he plucked the hard rock-like material from the root substance. He looked over it, noting how powerful and intense it felt in his hands, taking in the extreme brightness and energy packed in such a small shard. It was amazing. But now, he felt, it was time to discover its true power. He knew that its intensity and instability would mean that something violent in nature would happen if he damaged the shard in any way. That was exactly what he wanted. Or, more like what the conscience inside him wanted.

Forcefully, Galvatron threw down the shard and crushed it beneath his foot, ignoring the pain of the small pieces scratching against the bottom of it. He had no idea what would happen, so he stood back. Unfortunately for him, the violent reaction he was expecting did not happen. Instead, from the pieces rose a bright blue mist. It floated about aimlessly, just like the plains of the dusty planet did with every step he took. It stayed there for a while, doing nothing but hovering about the surface and the tiny, crushed shards.

Galvatron sighed in frustration and approached the completely useless Energon. He saw no point in using it for fuel, seeing as how it hardly did anything but float about nonchalantly. He placed his foot over the mist-covered shards and sighed once more. Another mission: failed. And what was worse was that even he, the leader of the Decepticons, would return to Chaar empty-handed, if he ever returned at all. A warning sign flashed before him, reporting of the dangerously low supply of Energon in his systems. He pivoted and looked out into space. If he didn't leave now, he would surely go offline before he reached the burned-out shell of his home base. Then Cyclonus_ would_ have to take up the reins as the leader. Even though Galvatron trusted his second in command, the thought of passing leadership to him made him feel empty and sick. He took a quick glance down at his foot that covered the Energon, and then walked away in frustration.

It was at that split second that Galvatron caught the mist rising out from under him. The bright blue vapor began to engulf his entire leg, and was soon working its way up the other one. The Decepticon leader tried to shake it away, but the cloudy substance remained, stuck to it like glue. Shocked, he again tried to wave it off, with little success. By now, the mist was warped around his whole body. The true instability of the Energon was beginning to show.

Galvatron felt a violent tug on his chest as he was pulled to the ground on all fours. His body began to shake and his insides felt uncomfortably different. The metal armor on his exterior felt much softer than it had been before. It began to grow bumpy in areas as well. The purple robot felt his optics flicker off and then back on, but everything he saw looked much different. Rather than seeing the landscape and mist before him with a thin veil of red to represent the blood red light inside his optics, everything had a definite color. He could now see the true red of the planet's atmosphere, the sharp electric blue of the Energon that due to his crazed programming, seemed to be mocking him and his pain. The mist continued to swirl violently around him as he desperately tried to push his way out of the foggy trap that covered his body. He knew that he had been changed into something other than a robot – but what? The vapor of the Energon was so thick that he could hardly see in front of his own face.

Just as Galvatron thought it would never end, the mist cleared. Everything dissipated into the nothingness of space. To say the Decepticon was confused was an understatement. Everything on him hardly felt right. His back hurt, his limbs ached with horrible pain. Worse – everything felt off, wrong beyond understanding. He could no longer hear the whirring of his systems, nor did he feel the cold metal of his armor. Instead it was replaced by soft, scaly skin. He could see in perfect color vision, rather than the normal veils of whatever colors a Cybertronian's optics were. He could no longer feel his empty fuel tanks inside him, but rather what felt like an organic breathing mechanism – lungs. He took a large gasp of air, relying on the planet's thin atmosphere to keep him alive over Energon. Everything metal on the Decepticon leader had vanished in return for something organic, something fleshy and soft, just like humans.

Now scared beyond belief, Galvatron looked down at himself to verify that what he felt was true. Everything was. His metal body had become covered in some type of soft, scaly, purple skin. He looked at his hands, which had now become large purple paws with talons jutting out from them. His feet looked the same. The leader noticed that he was faced with the trouble of attempting to stand on two legs, instead remaining down on all fours. The three protrusions that projected from his helmet had become hard, bony horns. His chest and abdominal areas were covered in thick, armor-like plates. They were probably used as a defense mechanism for whatever creature Galvatron had become. His shoulders were covered in sharp spikes, and his back ached and groaned trying to support the new weight and different form of the body. The Decepticon tried to ease the pain on his back by moving a bit, but grew even more concerned with his conditions when he noticed a pair of limbs that grew between his shoulders. They looked like an extra set of arms, floating easily and delicately in the small breeze of the tiny planet. The arms displayed three "fingers" which seemed to be connected to each other by a thin drift of gray skin, like a membrane.

Probably the worst part of all of it though, was the unusual feeling in his rear area. He tried to turn around to see it, but the strange object behind him moved with the direction of his body. Determined to figure out what it was, the purple Decepticon turned around quickly, catching a glimpse of a short, stocky tail that waved about casually on his body. It was completely embarrassing. Galvatron had heard of body parts such as these. He tried to access his memory banks for the information, but found it hard given the lack of a processor that could store anything from any time. He was organic, no doubt, but . . . how?

The confusion faded away in exchange for pure horror as Galvatron turned around every which way to catch a good glimpse of what he had become. He turned to the strong-standing Energon, which seemed to be mocking him for the physical change. Its solid surface provided a clear reflection of the creature before it. Bright, red eyes – so sharp and clear that they could slice anything in half. Shoulders, neck, and back covered in spikes sure to rip something apart, Galvatron looked like the ultimate killing machine.

Yet the Decepticon leader felt week and completely powerless, like the universe had been caving in on him for sometime, finally collapsing and piling its heavy load on top of him. His whole body became numb and feeble as he backed away from the crystal; its blue glow was even more menacing than before. But even with his fear, something made Galvatron feel compelled enough to approach the Energon again, as if another being was physically telling him to do so. He tried to refuse the phantom voice that controlled his body, but it still moved forward, tearing another chunk of the crystalline substance with his clawed hands. The Energon whined as he severed it from its hold and threw it on the ground in the same manner as before.

Again, the beautiful yet frightening mist rose up from the debris and fully surrounded Galvatron. It engulfed him, changing the organic body he was trapped in. Slowly, his began to hear the normal whir of machines and buzz of his fuel tanks again, which now informed him that they were full. His scaly skin morphed back into the familiar purple metal that he knew very well. He felt the extra limbs on his back vanish along with the tail, and soon found himself easily standing on his own two feet again, rather than four. Finally, his systems were running at full speed. Everything felt normal once again.

Galvatron looked over at the remaining Energon crystal just to be sure. Same metallic frame, same yellow fusion cannon on his right arm, same piercing red optics, same three-pronged helmet, same Decepticon insignia on his chest – same everything. The Decepticon's confusion levels only rose higher, though, when he attempted to figure out what had happened. What had he just experienced? This gorgeous, unsuspecting crystal erupted in a violent furry when it came in contact with the being before it, changing it into something completely different than what it already had been. Why? How was that even possible? Galvatron knew he had to wait for the responses of his unanswered questions – now was not the time.

A sudden burst of realization hit the leader quickly. He recalled how weak and vulnerable he felt without his metal armor, how insecure, frightened, and scared he was when not in his robot form. He knew from experience that an organic body could be easily crushed by something much larger, heavier, and sturdier – something like a giant alien-robot. Galvatron eventually managed to crack a mischievous smile on his faceplate. His sick processor became more active than it ever had been, as he silently began to formulate a devious plan.

Quickly, he grabbed the base of the Energon. While it may not have been a very good product to consume, it sure was something that could be used as a weapon. Galvatron ripped the very substance from the ground, laughing maniacally as he tugged. The Energon glowed violently in protest of the harsh treatment. Without missing a beat, the Decepticon took off back into the air, keeping Chaar in his tracking system's sights. He clutched the Energon tightly to his chest – maybe listening to those urging voices inside of him was not such a bad idea after all.

Existence for a ghost was always a hard thing to explain. Not many life forms, human, Transformer, or any other species rarely encountered such beings. Apparitions were considered fake in some parts of the universe, other places they were the center of all religions and practices. Some life forms had even personally encountered these spirits before. Most ghosts, however, preferred to wander aimlessly about space and time, avoiding contact with life at all costs.

Starscream was one such ghost. The ex-Decepticon kicked his almost transparent foot into the ground of the red planet's surface. He stared and sighed at the ground where the foot had touched – not even a single dust cloud formed from the non-existent footprint. There was nothing satisfying about any of this. Nothing would be satisfying to him for a long time. Like any other spirit, he longed for his true end, the time when he would finally make it to the Well of All Sparks, the time when he could truly rest in peace.

Every Transformer spirit longed for that feeling; it was something natural that would happen to every Spark after it extinguished. The Well, contained inside the Autobot Matrix of Leadership was the final resting place for all Transformers after they died, Autobot, Decepticon, or any other type of Transformer – at least until Starscream broke that natural event. While the cycle continued for other Transformers, his Spark could never find the Well after he had died, as if the Matrix was flat-out rejecting his presence. And because he could never find that peace that resided within, the restless spirit was condemned to spend eternity wandering about the endless universe, waiting for the Well to finally bring him home. That was the only thing he hoped for now.

His loneliness almost made Starscream forget that other life forms even existed. That is, until a bright flash of blue light rippled across the starry sky. Bewildered, the ghostly, multi-colored F-15 Eagle raced to the origin of the light, only to find two types of foot prints that went in all directions and a small hole in the ground, as if something had been uprooted from its place. He sighed once more and approached the empty area, which to anyone would look like a violent fight had broken out over something valuable. He investigated the hole in the ground, the walls of the small dip covered in a blue, liquid-like residue. At the bottom of the shallow area were a few, both large and small, crystalline chunks. They were a beautiful electric blue, like the color of Autobot optics. They shone brightly in a dazzling blue aura, given-off from the glow of the crystal itself.

Starscream immediately recognized it as Energon, even though he had not seen it in such a long time – but this type was not like others he had seen before. Normal Energon came from ordinary organic substances and from the core of Cybertron itself, often from resources such as other crystals, oils, and natural gasses. True, this Energon was in the form a crystal, but this gem was pure; gems used to make Energon cubes were not pure until they _became_ Energon. For this substance to already be Energon in a crystal form meant that it was not the true consumable substance Cybertronians used. So why was it so important? This baffled Starscream. Never before had he seen something like this. Never had he felt the unstable power that glided effortlessly through the glassy shard he had picked up. If the two creatures were fighting over this, it must have been rather important in some way.

Starscream turned his attention back to the footprints, their paths undisturbed by his ghostly figure. The first set of tracks he recognized as Cybertronian. They were large and pressed deeply into the planet's surface. The others however were of something Starscream had never seen before. They were much smaller than the Cybertronian-sized ones. They looked almost like paws – maybe they were. The red, white, and blue jet turned around to look for any evidence of what that creature might have been. Instead, his gaze caught sight of a small vapor trail of propulsion engines – ones used on Decepticons, and some Autobots, to help land-based robots fly. They were effective devices used during the War, but now mainly served as attractive and sell-worthy items to any alien willing to bid on it the highest. The Seeker's optics followed the nearly invisible trail until he landed on a small, purple object traveling farther and farther away from him and the red planet. He activated his magnification vision in order to get a better fix on the purple life form, but immediately grunted in disgust at it. No doubt it was Cybertronian, which didn't bother him at all. What upset him was _who_ the Cybertronian _was_.

Galvatron. He was the Decepticon who killed Starscream.

The one being in the universe Starscream could not stand.

The two 'bots had their fair share of battles, back when Galvatron was Megatron. Starscream, being his second in command at the time, had always been filled with a desire to overthrow the Decepticon in charge, taking every opportunity he could get to do so. Whether it was something as small as a slight injury in battle, or a trip away from the Decepticon base on Earth, Starscream would attempt to gain leadership of the faction. Unfortunately for him, Megatron had enough wits and quick reflexes to outsmart the Seeker's ploys every time. Not even the jet's best plans could conquer the tyrant.

When Megatron finally passed away, Starscream assumed leadership – all officially for a good minute. By the time he was crowned leader, the spirit of Megatron, which now resided in the body of Galvatron, ambushed the ceremony with his new troops. He killed Starscream and regained control of the faction easily after that. The red Seeker's Spark never found the Matrix though, which was why he was trapped out here. It was because of Galvatron that Starscream was the way he was, why he was left for nothing after the supposed "end" of the War.

Ever since then, Starscream plotted his revenge against Galvatron and the other Decepticons. He vowed that none of them would survive after he was done. But he always wondered how he would do it. He certainly would not become an Autobot.

Looking at the Energon in his hand gave him a devious idea. He had a feeling that if Galvatron wanted it so badly and fought another creature for it, and the fact that its power alone looked extremely unstable, it obviously must have been important. The ghostly figure stood and smiled, gathering the remaining shards and transforming into his jet mode. The ghost rocketed towards Galvatron's direction, preparing to settle down and spy on what the power of the crystal was used for, and waiting for the right time to strike. His thoughts circulated wildly as he spoke only one thing to himself, "I _will_ have my revenge."

Taking up the reins of leadership soon after Galvatron had left was beginning to take a toll on Cyclonus. The Decepticon second in command had always been prepared, but not for this. He now began to realize why his leader was always so angry and stressed. Or maybe that was because of the rash and senseless programming given to them by Unicron after their upgrade . . .

He paced around the throne room, Scourge at his side. The blue Decepticon had kept quiet the entire time, hoping not to push another comrade over their limits today. The tracker did his best to lock on to Galvatron's energy signature, with no such luck. His leader had gone too far from Chaar to be picked up by the planet's primitive tracking systems. Yet despite the lack of not knowing where the Decepticon was, Scourge remained hopeful that he was all right, something the other soldiers had lost a long, long time ago.

"Have you found Galvatron yet, Scourge?" Came Cyclonus' weary and desperate voice. The leader had been away for some time now, and every minute without him made Cyclonus feel more burdened than before.

"Not yet, but I can feel that he's close. I feel like I could see him if I looked up," Scourge said none-to-brightly. Cyclonus sighed and looked to the sky, shocked to find that Scourge's random, one-in-a-million guess was correct. Galvatron had returned like he promised. The purple second in command smiled to himself and quickly made sure that the landing pad near the throne was prepped and ready for his leader to land.

"Welcome back, mighty Galvatron! I see you have . . . returned with . . . something," He tilted his head at the sight of the blue crystal, "Is this Energon, sir?"

"Indeed, Cyclonus, it is," Galvatron smiled crazily, "Go ahead, feast your optics on it. This Energon crystal will be the key to the Decepticons' victory in the War." He brandished the crystalline substance for the others to see, noticing that the magnificent gem had drawn a large crowd of Decepticons eager to listen.

"I'm sorry, Lord Galvatron," Scourge interrupted the awe-filled moment, "But how will this be able to defeat the Autobots? And, isn't the War over?" For once Galvatron did not shoot Scourge, but instead clapped him on the shoulder.

"I'm glad you asked," he smiled once more, ignoring the previous question. He began to speak up, "My fellow Decepticons!" he walked forward, "For too long we have suffered from our defeat by Autobot servos. We have lost our home, our resources, and our connection to the universe around us. But no more! Today, and from this day forward, we fight back! I have discovered that this crystal," He raised it up, "can turn any metallic body into a weak and defenseless organic creature. By using this on the Autobots, we can turn them into these creatures and crush them. Because of this Energon, we can take back our home, and eventually conquer the universe!"

To demonstrate, Galvatron pulled a chunk from the crystal. It shrieked as he smashed it on the ground. Confidently, he let the insecure mist wrap around him, surrounding his whole body again with the gaseous vapor. He felt his body change once more into the strange creature. His armor became softer, his limbs began to change into sharp claws, and his back sprouted the extra arms as the membrane connecting each finger began to grow. Finally, his tail grew and flicked violently in the dust cloud. The mist dissipated in front of everybot to reveal the creature Galvatron had become.

Cyclonus stepped back in horror at the sight of Galvatron's new appearance. He became much smaller, but still looked menacing. "Take a good look, Decepticons. This is what will happen to the Autobots soon enough!" He quickly grabbed another piece and reverted back to his robot form, smiling deviously. The shocked faces of his troops soon faded into curiosity. "Today, Cybertron, tomorrow, the universe!" He bellowed.

The crowd erupted in loud cheers. They chanted proudly, "CYBERTRON! CYBERTRON! CYBERTRON!" Galvatron laughed manically at this and raised his cannon into the air.

"When I return from a quick test run, we will all set out to Cybertron and destroy the Autobots once and for all!" He then quickly selected a few troops to come with him: Cyclonus, Scourge, the Sweeps, and Soundwave and a few of his Cassettes. Their target would be Rodimus Prime, the leader of the Autobots. Without him, the faction would fall into chaos, making it a lot easier to be defeated. Confidently, Galvatron and his troops set out into space, preparing to do anything in their power to be sure that Rodimus would find them and die. Nothing could go wrong with this, even if he did put up a fight.

However, none of the Decepticons noticed the ghostly figure that followed close behind.


	4. Chapter 3 - The Signal

Chapter 3 – The Signal

Tracking duty was never a favorite job at the Autobot headquarters in Iacon. No 'Bot ever volunteered to take it, which was why Ultra Magnus was very skilled at the art. Being the only 'Bot that took the job, he knew all of the tricks to tracking. Whether it was a Decepticon spy or an Autobot requesting landing clearance, he would know about it. Nothing could get past his tracking expertise. Except for one thing.

"'Sup, Magnus," Cylinder slapped him on the back, making the Autobot second in command jump in surprise. The blue jet was the only known Cybertronian completely invisible to radar. Not even Cybertron's best tracking systems and radar frequencies could pick up her energy signature, as if she were installed with a signature shield before coming online. But that was proved false many times by several of Cybertron's best medics.

Ultra Magnus placed a hand on his helm to calm his stunned systems. He noted Cylinder's upbeat mood – something rare for her nowadays. He also noticed that she was actually _in_ HQ. Usually, she spent her days down in her All Spark-forsaken lab several levels beneath the surface. He turned to the Autobot, eyeing the smirk on her face. Her armor was dirty and covered in soot, yet her optics seemed brighter than usual; her energy levels remained the same as they were before she left Cybertron a few days ago. Being gone on a reconnaissance mission always took a lot out of Autobots – they were to remain in the shadows and spy on Decepticon activity for a few days. Cylinder probably did not fully understand the definition of reconnaissance though, seeing as how her armor was as dirty as it was.

"And I'm assuming your mission went well?" Ultra Magnus asked in annoyance.

"Let's just say that Scourge got a good yelling at when he got back to Chaar." She merrily grabbed an untouched Energon cube and walked over to Rodimus Prime's vacant desk, "Where Dorkimus?"

"He's . . . helping Cosmos with something – what happened to Scourge?" Ultra Magnus turned, frowning in disapproval when the blue jet sat down and propped her feet up on the desk. She lazily took a drink of Energon, ignoring the dissatisfied glares she received from the other troops in the building.

"Don't those morons know not to fly near the Delta 9 Sector? I mean, that place is always swarming with recon 'Bots. He flew near that area with a search party – loads of Energon cubes. I scrapped every piece. They never knew what hit 'em." Cylinder took another triumphant gulp of her cube before placing it on the desk. She knew how desperate the 'Cons were getting these days. They would do anything to get back to Chaar faster, even if that meant wandering into Autobot territory to do so. Since she was "volunteered" for recon duty often, she always knew where the Decepticons would go when searching for Energon. By now, she knew their favorite routes, harvesting areas, and tactics when searching for the lifeblood of the Transformers. It was almost funny to watch them flee in horror after being ambushed.

Turning on her sensors, she silently searched for Rodimus' energy signature. She chuckled when her results showed that he was close. Keeping an optic on the door she continued, "I followed them after that, landed on Chaar near their joke of a command center. Galvatron went berserk and left the planet, I don't know what for. That idiot put Bunny Ears and the Dragon Wagon in charge, though . . . I have no idea what was going through that processor of his at the time. I mean, I've seen some seriously fragged-up stuff, but as the humans would say it, that has to 'take the cake'."

At that moment, Springer, a green Autobot turned form where he sat, "I hear you're really scrappin' them. They don't like you very much for that." Cylinder and Springer never got a long with each other. Most of their conversations, if any, were composed of mainly insults. She turned her attention to the tall, bulky warrior. His dark blue optics stared into hers. Too bad he never knew that she could read his mind. Though, then again, she never tried – nor did she want to.

"And you think I care? Those fraggers deserved everything they got – they take away those we care about, they face me. Simple as that."

Rodimus suddenly appeared in the doorway of the headquarters, optics dull, walking slowly. He approached the front of his desk, where Cylinder was still sitting. He looked to where her peds were propped up and then back to her own gaze, "Why?"

"Does it bother you?" She placed her hands behind her head and leaned back, keeping an eye on the maroon Autobot.

"Yes," he replied.

"That's why." Cylinder swung her feet off the desk and rose from the chair, gesturing the Autobot leader to sit down.

Rodimus huffed some air before sitting, allowing the blue Autobot to crouch next to him, the large grin still on her face. "How'd recon go?" He asked tiredly, hoping that her answer would not be packed with blows and insults.

"Fine – I'll write a report later."

"Anything specific that you can tell me now?"

Cylinder thought for a moment. She never had a thing for recalling information. She knew it was all inside her processor somewhere; it was accessing the information that was a pain. Even though she had just recited it to Ultra Magnus, the file had stored itself away. Silently, the blue Aerialbot let her thoughts circulate and search through her massive systems, scrolling through data file after data file until she found the correct one, "Scourge was leading a small scouting group, loaded with Energon cubes. I ambushed them and destroyed the cubes, letting them go after that." She paused and tried to recall what had happened next. "I followed them back to Chaar, and remained there for the rest of the mission. Galvy got all pissed and took off, leaving Bunny Ears and Dragon Wagon in charge." Both she and Rodimus laughed at that – Cylinder because of the nickname she gave to Cyclonus and Scourge, and the leader because of the very thought of leaving them in charge to lead the Decepticon faction.

"Anything else?" Rodimus turned to her, even more curious than before with her findings.

"Yeah," she replied, "Galvatron returned with a really strange substance that–"

"Rodimus!" The conversation broke, as Ultra Magnus stood up, panic strewn across his face. It was not often that the second in command expressed this emotion, but when it was, something serious, and possibly dangerous, was going on. The other Autobots in the room stopped working and laid their optics on him. Rodimus and Cylinder rose and also stared at him. The entire attention of the HQ was now directed towards the large red and blue Autobot.

"What is it?" Rodimus approached his second, noticing the drastic change in the taller robot's tone. He seemed . . . uneasy. His face – worried, and his vents exhaled heavily.

"I just picked up a few energy signatures – eight 'Cons and one . . . odd signal. I've never tracked something like that before. They're heading towards us and they're coming fast. Whatever this energy signature they're carrying with them is, it probably is not good. We should send troops out immediately to investigate before they reach Cybertron."

Rodimus stepped forward and stared at the screen. A small red dot towards the center flashed and beeped. It moved closer and closer to Autobot territory, as the Autobots in the room grew nervous. The atmosphere became uneasy, awkward. Whatever this new signal was, it could not be good. "Cylinder, run a diagnostics test and figure out what's going on here."

The blue robot obeyed and stepped forward, tapping into Cybertron's massive systems with ease. She searched through the files and locked onto one in particular. The file she found contained lists, charts, and records of known Decepticons, giving information such as biographies, weaponry, battle strategies, alt-modes, and their last recorded position. The screen before the Autobots flashed and began to display pictures and stats of the Decepticons as the Aerialbot began linking the energy signatures with well known 'Cons. She stepped away from the screen and broke her concentration. Turning to Rodimus she spoke clearly, "I can match up the signals pretty well," she pointed to the screen, "Galvatron, Cyclonus, Scourge, two Sweeps, Soundwave, Laserbeak, and Ravage. The only one I cannot match with anything is this one," she pointed to the one signal that had no data in the system, the so-called "odd" one. "I'm assuming it's another 'Con."

Rodimus sat back down at his desk in deep thought. He knew that he had to act fast if he wanted to keep the Autobots and Cybertron safe, should this be a threat. It had been so long since the Decepticons had attacked the planet. The only explanation for this would be some type of energy, something that could fuel them up quickly and give them enough power to travel across space – but what? He turned to Cylinder, who sat down next to him again. All he had to do was think of something to say, and she would respond. It was a much better way to talk without others hearing or eavesdropping. The leader was one of the few Autobots who knew about the femme's special ability to read minds, and he was certain that she was doing so right now. _You lied about that last part, didn't you?_

_In a way,_ she responded. _Why?_

Rodimus looked straight at her, trying to find the right words._ Before we were interrupted, you said something about Galvatron and a substance that he brought back to Chaar, or, something like that. What were you trying to say?_

_I picked up a strange signal after Galvatron returned. I couldn't tell what it was, but he was holding a massive clump of energy, and the signature was very similar, if not the same, to the one Magnus picked up just now. I noted how the energy was unstable and very powerful. Whatever this power is, we should probably confront Galvatron before he gets to Cybertron. Only Primus knows what it could do. _Cylinder gave Rodimus a slight smile and nodded towards the other Autobots, all of them waiting for an order to be given.

The young Prime turned to Ultra Magnus, authority in his tone, "I will go and investigate this energy source."

"By yourself?" Springer interrupted and rose from where he sat, "All due respect, Rodimus, but you're letting your old, impulsive self peak through again. I mean, eight 'Cons and some unknown energy source? That's just asking to be killed. You should take at least _somebot_ with you." The green Autobot stepped forward, volunteering for the job.

"Actually," Rodimus turned and placed a hand on Cylinder's wing. She tensed from the contact – all flyers, Aerialbot, Seeker, or neutral, had exceedingly sensitive wings. "I was thinking of bringing Cylinder."

"What?" She spun around, an angered expression on her face. She threw the Autobot leader's arm off of her wing and rubbed the area where he touched, trying to calm down her stunned systems.

"You heard me, let's go," he began to head towards a nearby runway, only to be slowed by Springer.

"Uh, Prime, I don't mean to sound rude here, but don't you think you might need a few more soldiers – maybe a few _mech_ soldiers. Be reasonable here, Cylinder's just one of the many you cold use . . . and she's a _femme_." He whispered the last part, but Cylinder heard it, scowling in his direction.

"Based on her skill in battle, she already counts as ten soldiers right off the bat." Rodimus continued on, ignoring the disapproving grin.

Springer looked down at Cylinder and sneered. He towered over her, dark blue optics glaring into her own. Too bad he did not know that he had set himself up to be a slave of the blue Autobot's own power. In an instant, the green mech slipped and fell, making a loud crashing noise upon impact with the hard, metal ground.

"Careful, floor's slippery," Cylinder smirked; yet she kept up her normally sour attitude. She followed after Rodimus, leaving the rest of the Autobots in shock as they tried to piece together what had just happened, much to the Autobot leader's annoyance. He looked at the blue Autobot, who had reverted back to her old self, the robot who was always depressed, always saddened and confused with her existence.

"Y'know, after awhile, they're going to figure out that you've been doing that."

The taller femme chuckled slightly, "Sure they will."

Rodimus sighed and directed his attention away from her. Sometimes he just needed to get his mind off of the things that frustrated him, and looking around at the world before his optics helped a lot.

Cybertron was a beautiful world. It's gray metal gleamed in the faint light from its sun, Alpha Centauri. Before the War, when Rodimus had first come online as a brand-new sparkling, the metal haven used to have a definite day and night, the days bright and sunny, the nights dark and cold. Yet the War pushed the beautiful star away from the planet, making it become darker and darker until there was no true "daytime" to define or speak of. While its light still shone every once in a while, it was never like it used to be afterwards. There was still beauty on the planet's surface, though. The tall buildings of Iacon, the city the two Autobots were in, rose mightily in the sky. Circuits and lines filled with Energon covered the landscape like rivers and streams. The highways leading from city to city buzzed with other Autobots, each one going to one of the many different places of the large metal world, such as Vos, Praxus, or even Kaon. Everywhere he turned Rodimus saw life, energy – Cybertron was slowly becoming what it once was. Even the reminders and evidence of battle and war were slowly fading away. Sometimes it even felt that their gorgeous yellow sun was drawing the planet closer and closer once more. It was peaceful; it was home. Maybe not to Cylinder – whom he wished would just enjoy the beauty like she used to – but to him, it was a dream come true. The peacefulness and tranquility of Cybertron always lifted the burdens of leadership from Rodimus, as he felt more and more like his old self. Thinking about it made him almost oblivious to the fact that he and Cylinder had approached the nearest runway in the city.

"Ya sure we don't need a ship?" She asked in frustration.

"Nope," he replied

Cylinder lowered her head and sighed. She hated being a taxi. Quietly, she shifted into her alt-mode. The beautiful, blue Hornet gleamed in the dim light of Alpha Centauri. The jet engines rumbled as her afterburners ignited, a brilliant orange haze glowing from within. Slowly, she began to roll along the runway, picking up speed as she went. Eventually, the plane lifted into the air and circled around Rodimus, signaling him for the all clear.

Using a small pair of micron jets he had installed for more powerful jumps, he propelled into space, getting just high enough to be outside of Cybertron's atmosphere, where Cylinder flew by slowly, allowing him to garb onto her wing.

"Still think we should have used a shuttle," she said in frustration at the sensation dancing through her wing.

Rodimus sighed, "You'll live . . . It'll go by faster than you know it."

The next few hours of Rodimus Prime and Cylinder's mission were spent scanning the area around them. Cybertronians had hardly touched the region they had found themselves in, which was odd considering how close it was to the planet. Cylinder had found out why quickly, measuring and logging how different this part of space felt from the normal places she had been before. The temperature had dropped severely, and many small rocks and ice particles drifted about, making it seem like they had found themselves in a miniature asteroid belt. The blue Aerialbot came to a conclusion, summarizing that this part of space used to be along a common orbital path for comets and meteors that had been wiped out and extinguished sometime during the War. She only wished that she could have been alive to see it, to fully understand why this had happened, but she quickly pulled herself from the thought.

Cylinder collected every piece of data she could gather – recording, photographing, and examining every bit of information she got. It was painstaking, but both she and Rodimus knew it would pay off sometime later. The Autobot leader beside the blue femme, who was currently in jet mode, did his best to take samples of the nearby objects, gathering the small ice-like shards and chunks of rocks to store and put away. This may not have been the original mission, but since they were out there, it would be a good time to investigate.

"I know you're busy, but can you verify the coordinates of the Decepticons now?" Rodimus placed the remainder of his findings inside Cylinder's cockpit before she transformed.

"No matter what, we'll run into them. Right now we're between Cybertron and the 'Cons, so if they want our planet, they'll have to go through us . . . mainly me." She raised an optic ridge and looked at her leader, who was floating in a casual manner and smiling dumbly.

"Well that's good to know," he joked, "But I, too, can help."

"Mm-hm," she huffed and scanned again, this time for the Decepticon energy signatures. "They're getting closer; we should see them any minute now." Cylinder returned to her alt-mode, allowing Rodimus to grab onto her wing before accelerating. She hated the sensation that tingled through her sensors as he kept a firm grip on it, but did her best to ignore the pinch just as much as she tried to ignore the dark voices, or one single voice, perhaps. The jet speed along, keeping the Decepticon signatures in the sight of her radar.

Rodimus could almost feel their presence right on top of him. Their cold, menacing gazes, chilled to the touch – the perfect soulless killing machines. Every one of them – programmed to destroy. It seemed that it was all they knew how to do. Only a few of them ever questioned the cause, and most were hunted down and killed if they had committed such treason.

Strangely, Rodimus felt unafraid when he saw the bright, ominous gaze through the blood red optics of Galvatron's. Soon enough, his purple body became clearer, as did the rest of the Decepticons with the group – and the unknown energy signature with them. Cylinder scanned what she could of it, shuddering a bit when her scan results came back. Rodimus only knew that whatever she had found must not have been very good.

Galvatron smiled as soon as he knew Rodimus could see him, hinting that he was expecting the Autobot leader the whole time. "It's good to see you again, Rodimus Prime. How are things?"

"Cut the scrap," Rodimus replied flatly, "What _is_ that thing? And why are you and your troops headed towards Cybertron with it. According to the Cybertronian code, what you're doing is considered a threat."

"Hmph," the Decepticon leader clutched the blue crystal tightly, "So much for friendly greetings . . . You like my treasure? I found it on a small planet – some power it's got."

Sighing, Cylinder transformed. She looked at Rodimus and spoke softly, "That thing is an exact match to what I saw on my mission earlier. I just took a test on its energy – Rodimus, it's Energon." The Prime briefly looked at her and shifted uncomfortably. "I don't how, but it has the same energy output as Energon ten times over. That stuff's unstable . . . be careful." The leader's optics widened a bit as he took the information and let it sink in.

Cylinder turned towards Galvatron, disgust on her face. The slime ball of a leader had a lot of nerve to show up in Autobot territory. After everything he had done, he did not deserve to come anywhere near Cybertron, let alone be in her presence.

"Well look who's come along with Rodimus. Look there, Decepticons: that is the result of our doing. Our actions are the cause of her broken spirits. Take note."

Cylinder sneered at this, but calmed when Rodimus placed a hand on her shoulder. The Aerialbot sighed and settled down. She quietly thought about the lives Galvatron had devastated. The millions of innocent lives he deserved to die for. Not a single creature should have perished beneath him. She gazed at him. The soulless purple shell stared back and smirked. For a brief second, the two shared a moment of silence. The universe went still and the noise around them fell silent. Both tuned out everything else, and shared the feelings of one another. _After everything you've done to me, my friends, how can you even show your face in this sector without the slightest bit of fear of what might happen to you? _Cylinder knew that, by now, the Decepticon leader would have known about her special power, and if not, she hoped it would shock him enough to give her an advantage should the situation they were in come to a fight.

_You're still distraught about that? Believe me, every death nowadays is just like another star in the universe, _the leader thought clearly. Galvatron smirked and turned his attention back to Rodimus.

Cylinder felt as if the universe was caving in on her once more. She had finally come face-to-face with the killer of her friends. Sure, she had seen him before, but never like this. Yet despite what she had been taught, the Aerialbot could not bring herself to forgive him for it. She wanted him dead, to pay for what he did, to suffer for everything he put her through. Her processor ached as she switched off her optics. All she could think of now were the bots that died at his hand – Ironhide, Brawn, Optimus, and so many more. It made her feel sick.

"Galvatron, what is that thing?" Rodimus Prime repeated, now annoyed with the Decepticons' delay of actions. He noted how they had become cocky and arrogant upon this discovery – but could this thing really be as powerful and dangerous as they thought?

"This, my dear Prime, is the source of the Autobot's greatest downfall!" Violently, the Decepticon pulled a large chunk of the crystal from its place. The substance snapped like glass, glowing in protest as it was severed from the blue crystal. The Decepticons behind Galvatron began to surround both Autobots, pushing them closer and closer to their leader and the Energon. The insane look on his face added nothing to Rodimus and Cylinder's already shattered hope that they would escape. Silently, both Autobots, outnumbered and doomed, lowered their heads in defeat. Not even Cylinder attempted to fight. This Energon, while still unknown to the Autobots, looked menacing, and surely appeared to be some type of doomsday device for the Decepticons.

In his moment of triumph, Galvatron threw the shard as hard as he could, laughing maniacally. The mere thought of victory seized him, energized him. How long had it been since he last tasted the sweet flavor of triumph? He could not recall – it had been so long ago, like a barley recognizable memory. Everything slowed down as he gazed in awe at the crystal that propelled itself towards the two defenseless Autobots. Galvatron was too caught up in the moment to notice that the Energon, on its way to devastating the Autobots, stopped. It just . . . _stopped_, as if it had been caught. And indeed it was.

Slowly, a form began to appear from where the Energon was suspended in space. The phantom figure was nearly transparent as its body took a robotic shape. Every line was exact and definite, and soon after, colors began to appear. Red, white, blue, black, yellow – all were very familiar colors to both the Autobots and the Decepticons.

Starscream.

The ghost, clutching the blue Energon in his hand, turned and faced Galvatron, a deranged smiled on his face. In his annoying, high-pitched voice, he spoke, "Not the Autobot's greatest downfall, Galvatron – yours!" He quickly balled his free hand into a fist and shoved into his other, crushing the large shard with ease. The mist began to rise from the broken shard again – familiar to the Decepticons, but not to the Autobots. It swirled around Starscream, but then moved to Galvatron, then Cyclonus, and Scourge, until it eventually covered every Cybertronian in the area.

"But . . . how?" Cylinder whispered softly, examining the mist that soon began to engulf her like it did to the others.

"How is this doing . . . _this_?" Rodimus asked uneasily, pointing at the mist. He tried to pull out of the fog that was glued to him, and attempted to kick it away will little luck.

"No. How is that even physically possible for a ghost to do that? And . . . yeah, what in the Pit is this stuff? It feels nothing like the power and energy readings that I got earlier."

The mist, after swirling around the others, began to move towards the center of the large circle formed by the Decepticons. It moved in a circular path as if it were covering another invisible figure. The circle grew larger and larger until it was bigger and taller than everybot combined. Electrical charges began to flow through it, sparking every now and then, charging itself up. A large wind soon picked up, followed by a huge electrical storm around the mist, which now sported a large hole in the middle of it. It extended into a tunnel-like object – a wormhole. The transwarp energy started pulling the Cybertronians towards it, as if it had sprouted its own gravity field.

"Starscream, you idiot! What did you do?" Galvatron demanded as he tried to resist the pull of what had become a massive portal.

"I – I don't know!" The ghost was flung like a rag doll into the gaping hole, as were Cyclonus, Galvatron, and the rest of the Decepticons that were frantically trying to hang on.

Cylinder transformed in one last desperate attempt to flee, allowing Rodimus to grab on before igniting her thrusters at full force. It did little, though, as the massive energy of the portal caused the jet to stall out, dragging both Autobots in.

Once inside, Cylinder could see nothing but blue smoke. Most of the robots around her had passed out from the extreme pressure. Some awoke, only to be knocked offline again. The portal continued to pull on her, making her whole body feel heavier than ever. The Aerialbot began to feel weak and her metal shell grew softer and felt number by the second. She felt nauseous and sickened as everything began to spin. The universe finally came crashing down on her as she fully prepared for the end. This was nothing like the space or ground bridges back on Cybertron. The feeling was more intense, more extreme.

A small light appeared at the end of the void. It was white-hot, yet promising. Cylinder's hope reappeared – she had a feeling that everything would be all right. Everything would be okay. She grabbed Rodimus' hand, thinking of the possibilities of them getting separated if she had not held on. He would never survive without another allied robot around. She ignored the fact that his hand felt different, considering everything on her felt different as well. Closing her optics, the blue Autobot prepared for impact. The last thing she remembered was a large explosion and a blast of light. Then everything faded to black.


	5. Chapter 4 - Of All the 'Bots

Chapter 4 – Of All the 'Bots...

At first, Rodimus could remember nothing. The events prior to now were a blur, a forgotten dream. His thoughts, rather than circulating normally, were jumbled and clumped together in a clouded haze. Occasional memory flashes popped up, but went away just as quickly. He tried to stand up, but could not get off all fours, which struck him oddly. His vision was slurred and he could hardly see straight. He knew that sometimes after awakening from a recharge, he would need a few moments before his optics focused, but this felt different. And it was not just his vision and thoughts that were foggy. No longer could the Prime hear the whir of his systems, or the pulse of his spark. As far as he could tell, no machinery was even _close _to him.

Finally, his vision began to sharpen, and his jumbled thoughts soon righted themselves and were placed in correct order. The first thing he noticed was that even though he was able to see again, the color was off. The thin blue screen of his optics separated his full vision from the world around him, limiting the colors he was able to see. Now, every color was vivid and clear. Sharp blues and purples filled the dark sky before the Prime, showing that it was nighttime. Dark greens, yellows and browns littered the landscape below the skyline, and several light blues and whites filled the rushing river ahead.

Rodimus also noted how different everything sounded. The sound from the river was clear and not mixed with the usual static, robotic sound he got with normal audio receptors. Everything seemed a bit clearer.

But when he went to rub his aching head, Rodimus began to panic. He paused, his hand placed on his head – rather, _paw _on his head. He noticed four claws extending from it, each sharp and gleaming in the light of the moon above his head. The paw was a dark maroon color and was covered in a scaly pattern. He backed up slowly looking down at himself to be sure that there was no illusion. Frantically, the Prime darted over to the river and gazed into its reflective waters. The liquid, despite moving at a fast pace, gave the Autobot leader a clear enough image for him to see.

But this was not Rodimus- at least, not his true body. Rather than being covered in a thick shell of metal, the Prime found himself inside an organic skin. The body, completely covered in maroon scales, had to be supported on all four legs, rather than two.

He stepped back nervously and looked around, hoping that at least one other Cybertronian was here with him. He quickly blurted out the first name that came to his mind. "C-Cyl? Cylinder?" He turned and walked away from the river, looking in every direction for a sign of the dark blue flyer. "Cylinder!" He nervously called once more, waiting for the tough-as-nails voice to respond.

"I'm right behind you."

Rodimus turned to find that the Aerialbot was in a similar situation as he was. A blue reptilian figure, built much like his own, stood before him. Compared to Rodimus' own figure, the body sported much less detail and colors – two yellow, curved-back horns. Probably the most intriguing things about her were the two gray bracelets on her front limbs and gray necklace with a bright blue charm hanging from it. The Prime recognized it immediately: that was Cylinder's necklace, or spark chamber. From the way she had been built, her spark chamber was disguised as a necklace to make it look as if it was only for decoration, and not protecting the young 'Bot's very life source. Like the necklace charm resembling her spark, lines of the same colors streaked across the body, swirling around the head and limbs, glowing brightly.

"Cylinder," Rodimus spoke hesitantly to the creature before him, "Is that you?"

"Yeah, it's me," she sighed taking in the Autobot Leader's own body, trying her best to process the information as best she could.

"Is this really happening? Or is this a dream? I – I'm on Cybertron, right?" His body shook nervously as he spoke. Rodimus had dealt with horrible things before, but nothing this extreme.

"I can assure you," Cylinder pawed at the damp ground near the river banks, "This is real."

Rodimus huffed a bit of air. He did not like how this organic creature had to breathe. Cybertronians did not, anyway.

"I'm so confused, Cylinder. What happened? Where are the Decepticons?" Rodimus paused. The very thought of the 'Cons made him want to kick himself. Those slime balls – it was their fault that he was here, stuck with Cylinder, and stuck in this horrifying organic body.

"Where are _we_, for that matter?" Cylinder said softly.

"You . . . don't know?" Rodimus turned to her. This was hardly normal Cylinder behavior. Usually, the flyer could just touch something and easily find out where they were.

"There's no metal or anything technological in this area. I would need some type of database or computer or I would need to communicate with a local life form to find out where we are."

"Do you have any powers? I mean can you still, at least, work with your magic mind tricks?" Rodimus stepped forward full of hope. Maybe he was not entirely organic after all – maybe Cylinder could still control and work with him through that way. Despite hating being under her control, he let her try. What was the worst that could happen?

Cylinder stared dead into his eyes, concentrating every bit of power she had into taking over the control of Rodimus. The young Prime noticed how her blue markings and necklace charm glowed brighter and brighter with each passing second. He kept an eye on her until it grew too bright for him to see clearly without being blinded.

The sensation of control came over him quickly afterwards. Without warning, Rodimus' foot took a step forward, followed by another step. Cylinder had taken charge of his body. Apparently the Autobots were not completely organic after all. Both still had some Cybertronian inside.

"Well that settles one, question, but we still have other things to worry about." Cylinder sighed again and let Rodimus regain control of his body. She turned away from the waterfall and began walking down the side of the river.

"Guess we'll just have to figure it out, then," Rodimus sighed and followed the blue femme.

"You know, of all the 'Bots I could've been stuck with, it had to be you. I mean, I'd take _Smokescreen_ over you any day." Cylinder thought about the annoying blue mech. The gambler, the smoker, the cheater, and the lair – he was never a good friend of hers. He was lazy and rude, and did nothing but gamble in his free time, much to the annoyance of others. It never pleased Cylinder, but there was nothing she could do that could change him.

The Aerialbot's wandering thoughts were brought back to the present when Rodimus brought up another question.

"Cyl?"

"What?" She groaned.

"_What _are we? I don't think I've ever seen a creature quite like this before," he gestured to himself.

Cylinder looked at herself, then back at him. There was something – hardly recognizable, but there that told her what had happened, that gave the blue Autobot insight as to what she and the other Cybertronians had become. It was faint, though; stored somewhere in her massive memory banks, tucked away where it would take a while to find.

She remembered hearing about a creature similar to this in old Earth stories – nothing more than myths and folktales adult humans told to their children in an attempt to scare them for fun. This creature, while she could not remember the name of the species, came in various shapes, sizes, colors, and could even spit some type of material from their mouths, such as fire or water. The creatures were able to fly, and like her, were adorned in colorful, gleaming scales. They had razor-sharp claws, and long, spiked tails.

"I've heard of this creature before," she gestured to her body, "But I can't remember the name."

Rodimus nodded, "So . . . where are our real bodies? Floating about somewhere in space?"

"Doubt it. When we got sucked through that wormhole, I felt as if my body were changing – my armor grew softer and everything felt . . . off. That Energon must have a special property that was designed specifically for changing the physical structure of another being – either helping them in some way by means of stealth, or going against them and making them smaller, weaker, and more susceptible to injuries at the hands of the enemy." The Autobot leader was lost. He never was a fan of big words. Especially coming out of a medic's mouth. They always knew something and _always _had to use the biggest words possible just to confuse others.

"Okay, I understand," he lied, "But why would it change us to a form like this? Or bridge us here? I mean, wouldn't we know about this stuff; wouldn't it be stored in the Iacon database, or something?"

"You would think. But, like any other species, we're all learning. There are still so many things we haven't yet discovered. It's not exactly unheard of to discover something new."

Completely fazed and perplexed, Rodimus silently agreed and continued to walk forward, staying parallel to the blue femme. She walked with solemnity, emotionless and silent. Something she had been taught – "Never show emotion when in a dire situation. It frustrates the enemy into giving up. It also makes one look stronger and unafraid." It was a good lesson. The 'Bot that taught her was wise in his teachings. Cylinder missed him greatly.

_What was his name? Prowl?_ The maroon mech never had a thing for names. He would learn them once and forget them forever unless he met the 'bot the name belonged to.

_Yes,_ came the silent, yet painful response.

"Didn't know you were listening," Rodimus looked at her, a bit irritated that she was reading his mind, yet remorseful for bringing back her memories.

"I can't trust you when you're quiet," she muttered before falling silent once more.

"I'm sorry," he paused. "You miss him, huh?"

The femme nodded.

"Why?"

Cylinder paused, trying to search for the correct words to say about her friend, then sighed, "Prowl was one of the only mechs that made me feel safe. From the day I was sparked, he promised that he would look out for me – he had the characteristics of a true friend. He was always a loyal mech – he'd never betray me. And I took his presence and friendship all for granted. He was dead before I even got to say goodbye." She whispered that last word and choked back a sob then kept moving, slowing her pace as she walked.

Now Rodimus understood. These 'Bots that were killed were not just peers or fellow soldiers – they were her lifelong friends. And the Decepticons had shattered that friendship. That was the reason why war was so horrible – both sides, Autobot and Decepticon, had lost friends, family, loved ones. It was like a disease; it swept over others and took the ones they cared about. Only this one had infected Cybertron, and remained there for millions of years. It made him realize that not even Iacon, not even in its striking beauty and rebuilding, could be repaired from all that was lost.

The Autobots looked around themselves. This world – so peaceful and serene – was probably similar to Earth before the time of humans, or Cybertron during it Golden Age. The night's crisp, breezy air sent shivers down the Autobot's backs. The leaves beneath their feet cracked and snapped as they stepped over them. The faint smell of autumn filled the air, and the starry sky above offered plenty of light for the two creatures below. Not that it mattered – Cylinder's markings provided and excellent source of light for the two of them.

A fierce rumbling quickly interrupted the tranquility and stillness of the night. It shook and split the ground, causing both robots to loose balance and clumsily hurry to safety. Dust, rocks, and dirt showered the surrounding areas as the grassy field was torn up and trees were uprooted. Out from under the ground, a large beast climbed out. Its body was covered in dark green grass, like fur. Its limbs appeared to be shielded by massive boulders. The arms and the rest of the behemoth's body were wrapped and tangles in branches and more stones. Around the front were two piercing red eyes. The very beast looked like it had been torn from the very ground itself and given life. Then again, to the Autobots, anything seemed possible right now.

"What . . . in the Pit . . . is that?" Rodimus breathed slowly, eyeing the massive creature. It romped around and looked for the source of its disturbance. It caught sight of the two Autobots. Swinging its massive arms, the creature smashed the patch of grass Rodimus and Cylinder had been standing on moments ago.

"Something that doesn't want us here," Cylinder concluded, dodging another heavy attack from the rock fists.

"Well, unless we figure out a way to stop it, we're dinner tonight. Can you do anything about it?" Rodimus effortlessly jumped over another fist and swiped at a "furry" area with his claws. But rather than blood pouring out of the wound, dirt spurted out. He stared at it._ What? Is the organic's heart made of leaves, or something?_

"No," came Cylinder's response to his earlier question, "It's organic – there's nothing I can do."

"Scrap," Rodimus muttered to himself, dodging another blow of the giant's rampage.

"There's something else I can try, though," Cylinder shouted amidst the chaos.

"Then do it!" The Autobot leader responded. He kept the creature distracted so the Hornet could concentrate.

Cylinder finally remembered the words of the story: _Some can even breathe an "element." They shoot this element out of their mouths when they feel threatened or are going in for the kill. The most common element is fire._ The blue femme readied herself, envisioning the bright and devastating destruction of flames, picturing the power they held. She kept the creature in front of her and slowly inhaled. If this did not work, there was no telling what could happen.

As she exhaled, she felt tiny sparks playing at her tongue. They fizzed and crackled as she breathed harder. Finally, the sparks ignited. A roar of bright blue flames shot from the Autobots mouth and caught on to the beast. Its grassy fur immediately lit up, sending the creature spiraling out of control. It tripped over and rock near the edge of the river and fell in. The nightly silence returned and the dust settled as if nothing happened.

"Woah," Rodimus gawked, "Can I do that?"

"Maybe," Cylinder walked towards the river, ignoring the horrible after taste of what felt like burnt Energon in her mouth. She looked into the unsettled water, trying to find the creature with little success. It should have been there – it should have been visible.

"Um, Rodimus?"

"Yeah?"

"I don't think that thing's dead."

He chuckled, "What makes you say that?"

The ground rumbled once more, and the green, burnt creature plowed though it. Its eyes stared right into both Autobots, this time intent on killing them.

"Just a guess," Cylinder replied. The two dodged the massive arms again.

The silver creature, perched carefully upon a cliff, watched as the blue and red reptiles battled with the massive earth beast. Despite the heavy blows than rained down on them, both managed to dodge the attacks rather quickly. She was impressed.

Carefully, the silver reptile, similar in physique to the two below her, edged closer and closer to the fight. Her wings twitched in anticipation, preparing to glide her into battle. She dug her claws into the ground. It had been so long since she fought. A good beating was all she needed to ease the impatience inside her.

Before she took off, however, she stopped, and thought carefully. These two did not belong here. They deserved to get attacked for their carelessness. This was _her _land. The valley and everything in it belonged to _her_. But, then again, she could not just sit here and watch her own kind suffer. Eventually, the strangers would get tired, giving the gigantic beast a much better opportunity to go in for the kill.

Despite the argument raging inside herself, the creature took to the skies, beating her powerful wings, and locking on to the raging giant below.

Cylinder panted heavily as the massive creature continued to swing its heavy rock-hands at her. The green and brown beast had kept its focus mainly on the femme, leaving Rodimus alone. The Aerialbot did everything in her power to keep the giant back with balls and puffs or fire. It was all she could do at this point. Just when she thought she was going on the offense, the young Prime pounced, knocking the creature off-balance and out of the way of the Hornet's fire blast. _Why does he always have to screw things up? _She thought, regaining her focus long enough to watch the maroon Autobot be thrown against a tree. She stared, wide-eyed, at the dazed and nearly unconscious leader.

Frustrated, Cylinder sped over to Rodimus, finding that even in this organic state, she could still run reasonably fast. She shot another fireball from her mouth to distract the creature long enough for her to check on the injured Autobot.

"You okay?" she asked.

Oblivious to the chaos going on around him, Rodimus looked into the sky. His vision was hazy, and his back hurt terribly. He almost did not notice the bright silver dot approaching him. It glowed magnificently in the moonlight. He knew he had to be dreaming, now. No silver orb would just fly towards him. Nonetheless, stunned and fazed, he spoke, "Cyl. UFO."

"What?" But before Cylinder could turn her head, the "UFO" smashed directly into the sidetracked monster, punching a hole so deep in its body, that the silvery object came out the other side. And like that, the beast fell. It hit the ground with a loud crash, shaking both Autobots from the inside. Just as quickly as it had come, the silver UFO had disappeared in the night. The femme silently thanked the creature for saving both of them, then turned her attention back to Rodimus.

"You'll be fine, she concluded. Nothing too serious." Rodimus opened his mouth as if he was about to say something, but no words came out. Instead, he plunked his head on the grassy ground and passed-out.

Cylinder shook her head, "Idiot," before walking to the base of another nearby tree and placing her head down. Recounting everything that had happened in such a short time, the Autobot shakily sighed and let sleep take over.

**System_Rebooting…**

Cylinder's optics flickered on, adjusting to the bright light that practically engulfed the femme. Wait – optics? Cylinder placed a hand on her head, gently feeling the metallic features as her digits glided across them. She looked at herself: wings, dual swords, and large feet. Everything normal was there. She was a robot again. Perhaps that _was_ all a dream. Then again, she never remembered falling asleep in an area like this.

The air surrounding her was foggy and unclear. Parts of her feet were completely covered in clouds and soft breezes swirled around, touching her armor tenderly. Yet despite the cold feeling of the area, it was warm and sunny. The place she was in gave her the vibe of some type of cloudy paradise. Maybe it was.

Slowly, Cylinder began walking, taking in the vast and endless sea of clouds and mist. She enjoyed the warmth of the sun, letting its golden rays touch her body and keep her warm. It suddenly felt as if she had been freezing for the longest time.

As she continued walking, Cylinder noticed that something had appeared in the distance. The blue femme cautiously continued, the object getting larger and larger as she got closer. Then it hit her. She knew the 'Bot who was standing there. She also knew that she had not seen him in a long, long time.

Prowl.

The former Autobot second in command leaned over what appeared to be a railing, looking out into a field of clouds. By the calm look on the tactician's face, the femme could tell that he was lost in his own thoughts. The black and white police car remained silent for a few minutes, not even acknowledging that Cylinder was there. Maybe he did not notice.

The voice inside Cylinder's processor yelled at her. Here she was, less than ten feet away from her deceased friend, fighting the urge to run up and talk to him. Why? She was absolutely thrilled to see him. She longed to here his voice once more, to just get one more opportunity to speak with the mech that took care of her for so long.

Prowl continued to look ahead, ignoring the mental battle Cylinder was going through. The Hornet desperately fought the horrible voice that told her to read his mind. She could never bring herself to do it, though. She never wanted to. If he had a problem, he would state it, not keep it inside and let the anger and pain build up. Finally, growing frustrated with the silence, she stepped forward.

"What are you thinking about?" The words hurt coming out. Cylinder practically choked on them as she spoke.

Prowl remained quiet for a moment, going through his thoughts once more before giving her a response. "I sense something," was his only reply.

That voice. That voice that Cylinder had longed to hear again – finally being spoken. How she missed it. It was soft, warm, friendly, and unchanging. But a sense of fear lingered in it as well. It did not sound like the normal Prowl to her.

The Datsun turned and faced the confused femme, noticing how her right optic ridge was raised.

"I'm not sure I understand what you mean. How do you know?"

Prowl turned his attention back towards the lifeless clouds that spanned far beyond his sight, leaning over the rail once more, "Anything is possible in the Well."

The Well. Did Prowl just say "the Well?" Was Cylinder really _in _the Well, for that matter? She had only heard stories of it from 'Bots who had near-death experiences and had seen it themselves. Supposedly, it was supposed to be a Cybertronian version of what the humans called "heaven," filled with everything anybot could possibly imagine, want or desire. So it would make sense that Prowl's heaven was pretty boring and featureless. Or was it?

"Prowl," Cylinder shakily started, "Am I . . . dead?" The sudden fear of leaving the Rodimus behind, injured and weakened, hurt the femme. He could easily die out there; and knowing him, he would.

"No Cylinder, you are not. You are simply . . . visiting." Prowl continued to focus most of his attention ahead of him, paying no mind to the baffled Aerialbot.

The taller femme moved closer to him, lost in his words. _So, I'm not dead. But visiting? Am I really in the Well? And more importantly, is this really _Prowl_? Is this an illusion, or is this really his spirit? _Cylinder looked at his chest, completely unscathed and free of any gunshot wound. The older mech was completely healthy, calm, and full of life. But how could she be talking to him then? How could she have gotten here?

"Prowl, I don't really understand. Why am I here?"

"I need to warn you, Cylinder. You're in more trouble than you think." Prowl never used Cylinder's nickname, like most other 'Bots did. "Cyl" was just a word created by some Autobots who hated saying her full name. Even Optimus Prime called her by it. Prowl could have cared less either way.

"I think I already know that," she replied softly, referring to the most recent events.

"You don't," he replied more casually.

"Okay, then what do you need to warn me about?"

"Truthfully, I'm not entirely sure about what is going on," Prowl stood straight again, hardly tall enough to surpass Cylinder's chin. "Look, all I know is that in the next few stellar cycles, you will face an obstacle that you may not be able to accept and handle right away. It will make you question your beliefs and everything you once thought you knew about the universe and yourself."

Cylinder nodded at the mech and sighed, "Then I wish you guys could be there to help me through it." She gently reached an arm out and touched his chest. There should have been a gaping hole there. There should have been an empty Spark chamber, devoid of life, completely hollow without Energon. Empty. He should have been dead, yet here he was, unharmed and alive.

Prowl stared at her, perplexed. He looked down where her finger digits touched him and smiled slightly, tenderly grabbing her hand and holding it in his own. His sapphire optics stared into her electric ones, calmly soothing the scared femme. "Cylinder, you do not realize this, but I always have been," he let go of her hand and again smiled slightly, "And I always will be." He paused, letting go of her hand, "Now wake up – the Autobots need you."

Everything began to fade around Cylinder. She looked around frantically as the clouds, mist, sun, and even Prowl vanished from sight. "Wait! Prowl, I –" Everything faded to black.

The last thing Cylinder could remember was opening her eyes.


	6. Chapter 5 - Fault

Chapter 5 – Fault

The faint morning light broke over the horizon. It gently caressed the mountain walls and dew-covered fields of grass and glimmered on the surface of the rushing river. The early birds began their morning song, awakening the other creatures around them. The valley here, nearly all of it was graced in peace, except for the cave nestled in the far corner of it all.

It sat there, hidden and concealed among the rocks and brush. Hardly any light touched it during the day. It was cold, drafty. Water droplets dripped from the ceiling above. But inside, life existed. At least, life was abounding based on Decepticon standards.

Galvatron stared blankly before him. The purple reptilian figure kept his eyes trained on one spot of the cave's floor. To most creatures passing by, there would be nothing there, but for Galvatron and the other Decepticons inside, there was.

A ghostly figure, barely visible, lied nonchalantly in the corner. He, too, had a reptilian build, complete with scales, and extra set of limbs (apparently "wings," as he dubbed them), and a tail, among things. Two black horns and crests, streaked with dark blue, adorned his head and neck. Gleaming red scales decorated his thin body, followed by golden yellow chest plates that spanned from his neck down to his tail. A cocksure grin, plastered to his translucent face, stared back at the Decepticons and their leader, mocking, aggravating them.

This was _HIS_ fault. If only he had not have activated the portal, if he just stayed away, no one would be in this mess. The Autobots would have been defeated by now, and the Decepticons could have finally claimed victory in the War, but no. No, he had to screw it up, like always, like before. Starscream continued to stare at Galvatron, reigniting the battle that raged between them for longer than the Great War itself.

"It's not _my_ fault," he repeated for over the thousandth time that morning, "_You _were the one that found the Energon, oh _mighty _Galvatron." He mocked the purple Decepticon before him, taking extra care in over-emphasizing the "mighty." Galvatron responded by only narrowing his eyes tighter. He said nothing, but instead continued to glower at his former second in command. It was not like he could physically do anything to him, after all.

In an attempt to break the awkward silence, Cyclonus walked forward. The other purple Decepticon towered over his comrades. He was long, thin, and aerodynamic, built perfectly for speed. His claws, horns, and the tips of his tail were exceptionally sharp. The slender Decepticon looked at his leader and spoke softly, "Any suggestions on our next course of action, sir?"

Galvatron kept his focus on Starscream, but replied instantly, "We need to find a better place to work. A run-down cave reminds me far too much of Chaar." Finally turning away from sneering Seeker, the Decepticon leader slowly approached a blue crystal. The gleaming gemstone reflected his scarred face, perfectly detailing every feature that rested on it. "And above all, we need to protect this, _and_ figure out what it did to us."

Galvatron turned sharply at the sound of Starscream's incessant, high-pitched voice. In perfectly clear Cybertronian, he spoke slyly, "I would _love_ to help you, Galvatron, but you must promise me to return the favor."

Before Galvatron could respond, another member of his ranks stepped forward, "And what makes you so sure that you could help us?" The sound of the thick, deep voice belonged to Scourge, who, like everybot else, had become one of the reptilian creatures. His body, contrasting to Cyclonus', was short and stalky, hardly tall enough to surpass Galvatron's jaw line. His light blue scales glinted in the faint light of the cave. Large wings, even larger than Cyclonus', decorated his small body, and spanned wider than the largest area of the cave. His thick tail sported a large, club-like tip, perfect for crushing and mangling another with brute force. Accompanied by two identical Sweeps behind him, Scourge approached Starscream as he gazed idly at Galvatron.

The former Decepticon Seeker then lowered his head to make eye contact, speaking clearly, "I have a way with negotiating, _Scourge_, as you probably recall from the memories of your past life."

Scourge snarled and bared his teeth. He could hardly remember anything about who he once was. His previous life's memories had been almost completely wiped when he was rebuilt with the exception of his old name and whom he was loyal to. It seemed that only Galvatron could remember who he used to be. Maybe Scourge had gotten the tail end of the deal when he was saved from death, along with Cyclonus and the Sweeps. Maybe the name Thundercracker designated him as a Decepticon soldier in name only, and nothing more.

Still, it did not mean that he could not imagine something better. If Scourge was anything like Thundercracker, he knew that there was hope. Free will was such a unique and uncommon program for the Decepticons, that it was almost considered to be a myth. But it was not for Scourge; he knew that somewhere, deep down, he could remember everything – what he really was, what was his purpose, what he used to stand for, and why was he here.

But then again . . .

It was Galvatron's turn to speak. He stared down Starscream, speaking in a threatening tone, "What do you want in return, Starscream?"

An arrogant grin on his face, the red flyer snorted, "Isn't it obvious, Galvatron? What has any dead mechanism wanted? What do I crave more than anything right now?"

"Leadership of the Decepticons," Cyclonus accused more than asked, positioning himself between his leader and the former Decepticon, "You wouldn't dare," he breathed slowly.

"No, Cyclonus, not that. I've learned my place," he lied. "No, what I want now is something bigger than that." Starscream was many things, but he was nowhere near honest. He _did_ want to be leader of the Decepticons, and he _definitely _wanted Galvatron out of the way, but being the great swindler and schemer he was, the red 'bot knew that now was not the time to attempt taking over the faction. Especially for the situation he, while he hated to admit it, was in.

"What is it then?" Galvatron demanded, shoving Cyclonus out of the way. His nose, mere inches away from the smaller creature, breathed slowly. A hint of dark electric crackles could be heard coming from inside his mouth – his element, dark electricity.

"All I ask, Galvatron, is that you restore my Spark, so I may be alive once more."

"No," came the immediate response, "And not just "no" because I don't want to, but "no" because it's impossible."

"And how do you know that, Galvatron? Have you opened your optics lately? Taken a look around you? There's more to this universe than you and your ridiculous beliefs and goals."

"I believe that you once followed them yourself, Starscream, lest you forget the days _before_ I killed you."

Starscream mentally kicked himself for going there. Being reminded of his downfall to the very one he tried to conquer really clamored down on his pride.

"No," he breathed slowly, "No, not that. Different. The power . . . to restore my life lies . . . within the very power of that Energon," he pointed to the shimmering blue crystal.

"Repeat of earlier conversation: impossible," Soundwave echoed from the corner of the cave. Having remained silent all this time, the communications officer stepped forward, examining Starscream and his casual demeanor.

The dark blue Decepticon, while still taking on the same form as the rest of the soldiers in the cave, looked much different in appearance. His body was covered in dark blue scales, followed by the occasional gold and black streaks here and there. Four even darker blue horns jutted and curved back against his head, and a long, spiked tail balanced out his body. Around his front legs rested two bracelet-like objects somewhat mechanical in nature. They stayed firmly wrapped around Soundwave, one bright red and black, the other grey and silver.

Laserbeak and Ravage were the only creatures that passed through the portal without changing from their original form of a robotic condor and panther. And like before, they stayed with their original creator, protected by him.

"Is it impossible, Soundwave?" The incorporeal figure trotted nonchalantly around the Decepticons in front of him. Taking a piece from the blue Energon crystal, he smashed it between his translucent paws, defying the laws of physics before the others. Slowly, the dust of the shattered shard ignited and sparked, a ghostly smoke arising from it. Walking over to a darkened corner of the cave, he threw it to the ground, letting the particles land on the dead, half-eaten rabbit that lied there. Hungry Decepticons looking for a meal had caught the creature earlier in the night, but now, the lifeless animal's body fused with the blue mist reanimated right before their eyes. The wounds and bite marks that covered the flesh of the small body, of course, did not heal, giving the rabbit an overall zombie-like appearance. Bright blue eyes were the first to show it was alive. They illuminated the dark corner of the cave, but made it dark again as the terrified furry beast fled, half-eaten and bloody.

Satisfied with the show, Starscream turned to the rest of the reptilian creatures in the room, "I have discovered, that, with enough Energon applied – even more so that what was used to activate the portal – the crystal's unstable power can act as a life force for a dead being. It practically makes such a being _immortal_."

"Immortal?" Cyclonus moved forward, curiosity strewn across his face. "Does that mean we could bring back our dead; we could forge a new army of the undead, Galvatron?"

"Perhaps," Galvatron looked at Starscream, blood-red eyes gazing upon each other, "How did you know this, Starscream?"

Now he was stuck. Starscream did know, but how could he tell Galvatron? He needed to come up with a lie big enough for the Decepticons to believe him. The Decepticon leader would tear him apart if he knew that his former second in command had done his research through the systems and computers of their very enemies, and then erased the files so no other Autobot or Decepticon could ever find them. The Energon was known, yes, but only among the ancients. Very powerful and once used for the longest amounts of times, the Energon was the great technology before the spacebridge, but was once thought destroyed after the beginning of the many wars on Cybertron. But if Galvatron knew that, there was no doubt that he would use it for a whole new purpose, even more dangerous and evil than using it against the Autobots.

"Intuition," he replied in the voice of a scheming salesbot, "The Well holds many answers." Apparently, his lie worked, because the others, even Soundwave, were buying it.

"You've been to the Well?" A voice behind Scourge spoke out. A Sweep stepped before Starscream with a questioning gaze.

"Yes," Starscream nervously nodded, "It's quite amazing within the Matrix, I assure you."

Behind him, Galvatron sneered in disgust, "And how did a pathetic spirit such as yourself manage to find your way out?"

Starscream was trapped yet again. Nothing could ever get out of the Well unless its life was restored. Every 'bot who passed on was taken to the Matrix, forced to remain there forever.

Acting fast, the former second in command moved out of the cave, compelling the other Decepticons to follow him, "That, Galvatron, is my secret."

Cylinder's eyes shot open, only to be blinded by the sunlight that filled the air. Startled, the blue femme jumped back and blinked a few times before regaining focus. She looked around. The rushing river behind her babbled softly, lapping against the rocks scattered about. The grassy field stretched before her, moving in sync with the gentle wind that glided across its blades. The morning sky – at least, it seemed to be morning – was a deep, dark, almost sapphire blue, unusual for morning skies but not unlikely, and very much like the color of optics . . . much like the color of Prowl's.

Cylinder shook her head, digging her front feet into the mud subconsciously. The dream – it felt so real. So real, in fact, that the blue flyer was so sure that she really _was_ talking to Prowl. His spirit, maybe, but still, the reality of it all hit Cylinder the hardest. What did he mean? _You're in more trouble than you think_, his voice echoed through her processor.

Yet despite this, for some reason she felt relieved. Relieved to see him, relieved to get a chance to talk to the black and white mech again. His words, though, continued to repeat themselves until another voice began to take over, the Voice, as she had come to call it, which had been with her for as long as she could remember. It almost seemed apart of her sometimes.

_Yes, yes, you're in trou-ble. No one's safe from yo-u! _ It mocked playfully. _You should run, Cylinder. Move along, keep going, your journey here has hardly begun._

_No_,Cylinder replied, _No, I wont listen to you._

_You can't deny it, Autobot. I am you, you and I are one in the same being, and you _will_ listen to me. _It spoke a little louder, causing Cylinder to lower her head in frustration. This was new – never had the Voice called her by her name before, let alone "Autobot." Still, remaining as strong as she could, the Aerialbot refused the temptation inside her.

_Move_, the Voice, seething with venom, hissed violently, _now_. Cylinder did as she was ordered, and moved forward, approaching a still unconscious Rodimus. The Prime's left side was heavily bruised from his neck down to patches on his tails, purples and blacks covering him. He definitely needed some serious medical attention. No bones, circuitry, nor wires should ever be sticking out or showing beneath skin or shell like that. The femme grimaced at the sight of it, admitting to herself that in all her years as a medic, nothing was more disgusting than that. She nudged the mech with her paw, causing him to shoot his eyes open in pain.

He groaned and slowly lifted his head, "Ah . . . how does it look?"

The look of annoyance on Cylinder's face turned to anguish, "Um . . . okay, I guess." She bit her lip, stepping back far enough to allow him to rise to his feet. She was surprised the mech could even stand.

"I know you're lying. How bad does it look, really?"

"Uh . . ." she led him carefully to the river, avoiding every rock, hill, and root in the path. When they approached the river and Rodimus gazed into the reflective waters, he stepped back slowly, eyes widening the span of his head. "Let's just say that you should really consider taking it easy until we get back home."

"_If_ we get back home," he corrected.

"No, we will. I'm sure of it," the femme countered, generously supporting the Prime as he lied back down.

"And exactly _how _are you sure of it?"

"I just . . . am."

Rodimus dropped his head to the ground and sighed, "You know your mind powers would be a whole lot more helpful if they said exactly what was going on."

"That statement is cliché and overused, but true," she agreed, pawing the soft ground near the bank. "It just makes me wonder how–"

The sound of a vengeful roar shook Cylinder from her words. The roar seemed more of a plea for help than a cry of fury. A dark shadow casted itself above the two creatures on the ground, but passed just as quickly. A large creature, shockingly familiar in Cylinder's mind, erratically flew over-head. Though the sun shaded most of its large body, the femme could make-out the light green scales that adorned it, and the unmistakable bat-like wings that kept it so high in the air.

At that moment, the blue Aerialbot made the connection. The missing link between what she could not remember and what she had become wove tighter perfectly. It was the only explanation.

Taking her eyes off of the massive creature, she turned to a wounded Rodimus, "I know what we are," she exclaimed cheerfully, very uncommon for her lately.

"Do tell," the injured mech replied sarcastically.

"Dragons. That's what we are."

Rodimus lifted his head and stared at the massive reptile that flew away from them. Maybe it was his blurred vision, but the Autobot leader could vaguely see a trail of red dripping from its arm, leading back to a sufficient bite-sized hole further up the body.

"Wonder what kind of fight it's been in."

"Yeah, that doesn't look good," she replied, "Maybe we should follow it, y'know, so we can help."

"Who are you and what have you done with Cylinder? The Cyl I know doesn't change like that over-night. What in the Pit happened to you after I blacked-out?" The Prime asked sourly, rising to his feet once more.

Cylinder looked away, trying to block out the fight between the dream and the Voice. "Nothing," she huffed, returning to her usual downer self. But she had caught it. After the dream, she seemed to feel a whole lot better. As if knowing Prowl was oaky made her feel okay. But it was a dream – not a real event, right? Yet the message behind it was disturbing, to say the least. It was all too confusing.

Flexing the so-called wings on her back, she positioned herself in the direction of the wounded dragon, "If you're not coming with me," she spoke darkly, "Then that's fine. But even like this, the day will never come where I turn my back on those who need help." All she had to do was copy the way the dragon had been moving. Being the natural flyer she was, Cylinder had no problem with lifting herself into the air, even if flapping wings was a bit different from normal jet engines and afterburners.

Rodimus gasped in pain, but nodded all the same, "You're insane, but fine. There's no way on Cybertron that I'd allow you, or any of my troops for that matter, to be separated. I'm coming with." The leader slowly spread his wings and repeated Cylinder's movements, and before long, the maroon mech was hovering a few inches off the ground. "Don't expect me to keep up."

"Don't worry," she replied, somewhat surprised that both she and Rodimus had figured out how to fly so quickly, before bolting into the air with lightning fast speed, the green dragon in her sights.

Ten minutes earlier

Starscream floated ahead quietly, listening to the violent growls and hisses form behind. Being an apparition had its perks. While the rest of the Decepticons trudged through the muddy swamp below him, the ghostly flyer was able to stay aloft with ease. The tightly packed trees would have caused a problem for the others if they flew, though. At least Starscream could pass through them.

"Having fun up there, yet?" Galvatron called, causing the red Seeker to bust up laughing.

"Yes, I'm having fun," Starscream replied mockingly.

"Maybe we should bring him back now so he can suffer the stuff we're going through," Cyclonus growled, swatting at a red spider that found its way up his shoulder.

"No, he needs to suffer the pain of being a ghost for as long as possible." Galvatron and his SIC looked up at the laughing spirit.

"Yeah . . . he's _really _suffering up there," the taller Decepticon spoke sarcastically.

"Oh, hush, let him enjoy himself for now," Scourge called from the back, desperately trying to keep his massive wings tucked in and away from projecting sticks and branches that hung in the pathway so carelessly.

The Decepticons noticed a sudden change in the terrain when the mud became less thick and more solid, and the densely packed trees began to spread out. They came to an open area, enclosed in a circle of trees. The ground was covered in dead leaves and moss, as if someone purposely tried to make the area stand out from the rest of the surrounding woods. The moment the Decepticons, even Starscream out of sheer curiosity, stepped in to the circle, an immediate surge of power flowed through them. For a moment, all of them, even the vaporous form of the Seeker, felt the disturbance of the surge, while the living Decepticons responded to the surge in a very Cybertronian manner.

"Primus . . ." Galvatron breathed slowly. In the middle of the circle sat a small stump from a long since dead tree. Secured within a small, transparent case on the top of the stump sat a stone, filled with an abundance of shining colors and energy, much like the crystal that rested carefully under the watch of Soundwave, who kept his distance behind everything else. The stone was jagged and charred black in several areas, like it had been used to cut through something burning hot, or set ablaze by whoever owned it before. The face of the stone was etched deep with ancient carvings, one of which taking on the form of a creature that appeared to be very similar in shape to Cyclonus, yet different somehow.

Grasped by greed and desire, a Sweep reached forward to touch the dazzling gem, but was halted abruptly by Starscream. "You idiot! Why would you even think about touching it? It's clearly a trap!"

"Come on, Starscream, how could it be a trap?" the Sweep protested.

"Think about it: a stone, filled with energy, looking like that, just put out in the middle of an open area? Nothing like that just sits there without being rigged."

"Starscream has a point," Galvatron reluctantly admitted, "But it sure looks like it's important. Why don't we at least have a look at it?"

"But– Did you not hear a word I said?" The Seeker growled, too angered to see the expressions on the mesmerized faces of the other Decepticons.

"I would listen to your red friend: he's right, you know." The sound of the voice caused Galvatron to turn in annoyance.

"He's not my–"

A green creature, not much taller than Cyclonus approached the group, a somewhat calm look on his face. Starscream quickly glanced back to the stone, then back at the creature and gasped, "You're the creature in this stone! You're a–"

"Dragon? Yes, yes I am. My name is Acid, guardian of the Acid element, and you are?"

Galvatron walked forward and eyed the taller dragon. He found it odd that his name was the same as his element. The dark electric current crackled beneath his breath as he stared into the bright green eyes, without pupils, he noticed. Acid was not blind, though, because the dragon seemed to follow every move the Decepticon leader made.

Somewhat ignoring his own question, Acid chuckled and pushed his way through the group of Decepticons, completely passing through Starscream in the process. The green dragon had large wings, and an even larger tail. His thin back was covered in dark green stripes, his head perfectly decorated in ashen horns. Reaching out a slender paw, Acid carefully opened the box and pulled the stone from its place. He smiled as he ran a claw over its scratched surface, letting it wander between each groove and bump. He then turned back to the confused bunch of Decepticons, and spoke quietly yet boastfully.

"This is the Dragon Stone. I cut it myself from the diamond it came from. Using my own element, I, the last Acid Dragon, created this stone under the power of the Trine Guard."

"The . . . 'Trine Guard'? What's that?" Scourge asked uneasily.

"The Trine Guard was an alliance formed between the very first Acid, Sludge, and Magma Dragons – eons ago before I was even born. All three Guardians, the cultural leaders and masters of their respective element, were sworn to protect the gate to the scorched earth beyond the Sacred Valley. With the combined powers of the two other guardians and myself, we forged the power of the Dragon Stone." Acid looked up to find the dragons before him, even Soundwave, with their brows arched.

"You lost me there. So . . . what does it do?" Starscream asked, a smile slowly forming on his lips.

"It has the power to cut through any material on contact," he smiled contently.

"That's it?" Galvatron sneered, "I get a lengthy speech on the formation of this piece of rock and all it can do is cut through things? What a waste of power!"

"It is not a waste, I assure you, my friend. You need to calm down," Acid clutched the stone carefully and turned back towards the box that protected the precious gem, consciously keeping an eye on the angered purple beast behind him.

"Calm down? You have no right, no idea what you've just done! Do you know who I am?"

"A very self-centered, angry fool who desires nothing but power."

Galvatron bared his teeth as Starscream began to laugh uncontrollably. With no time to think it through, Galvatron charged on Acid, letting loose a full blast of electricity. The green guardian dodged with ease, and still clutching the stone, let loose his own attack: a boiling stream of acid. It hit Galvatron, causing the leader to step back and cry out in pain. How he wished he had his Fusion Cannon with him right now.

Almost instinctively, Soundwave dropped the blue Energon off of his back and advanced, dispatching Laserbeak and Ravage in the process. The red condor swooped low and shot to well-guided lasers, just clipping Acid's wings as he took off into the air. The green dragon winced at the contact, but retaliated with a whip of his tail, knocking Ravage back into the trees.

As Acid made his getaway, he felt a massive wave of pain shoot through his shoulder. A purple dragon, Cyclonus, had latched his jaw around the guardian's leg, tugging him mercilessly back to the ground. Blood poured from the wound, and Cyclonus, being the killer he was, found it amusing to see the organic creature in pain. A volley of ice shards hit the green dragon broadside when Scourge and the Sweeps discovered that they could use the element of Ice.

Acid still kept ahold of the Dragon Stone when a strange feeling came over him. He suddenly began to loose control over his own body, as if something else was moving him. He knew that something was inside his own body, but before he could figure out what was going on, he found himself flying face-first into a nearby tree. The green dragon still remained alert, yet he was growing weaker by the second. As he looked up, he thought he saw a red mist evaporate from his body and return obediently to the Decepticons' side.

He lifted his head to find his precious place destroyed and enveloped in flames by the rage of Galvatron and his electric blasts. He got up and dashed from the area where he had been on the ground. A flaming branch slammed into the spot, causing the ground to ignite around it. Driven half by pain and the other half by sorrow, Acid lifted into the air once more, clutching the Stone tightly. Silently, he swore vengeance on the dragons that desecrated the forest. Trying his best to help his wound, he flew higher, watching silently as the embers rose into the sky.

Present time

By the time Rodimus and Cylinder had gotten high enough, they could see the black cloud of smoke from the nearby woods. By the lack of scent that the two dragons received, both knew that the fire was recent, and spreading quickly.

"What do you think happened?" Rodimus' eyes went wide as he held his side carefully.

"I don't know," was all Cylinder could say. She had seen enough fires on Earth to know what it must be like for the inhabitants of this place. To loose their homes – it must be awful.

"Should we go back and help?" Rodimus asked, looking back down at the river.

"Even if there is a river nearby, there wouldn't be anything we could do. That fire's huge – it's going to take a few days before that beast's out," she replied grimly. The feeling reminded her of the times when she worked as an assistant medic to several mechs in Autobot City. When humans got injured, when robots were killed, it was her job to break the news. Everything about it felt wrong.

Cylinder turned back towards the green dragon, now barely visible before them. "Come on, we need to follow him. Maybe there's some way we can help him, at least."

"Maybe he knows something about the Decepticons," Rodimus continued to stare at the burning forest. Something in the back of his mind made him feel that the fire was their fault.

Cylinder could feel it too. As she ended the connection from reading his mind, the Voice called to her again. _It was the Decepticons. You know it was. But the time to fight them is not now. Go, go on now – that dragon needs you, and you need him. _The blue femme scowled but shook her head. Moving forward, she called to Rodimus, "Let's go. There's nothing we can do now."

Rodimus sighed painfully and followed after her.


	7. Chapter 6 - Searching for a Problem

Chapter 6 – Searching for a Problem

The fire continued to burn through the forest grove. It spread further and further outward, engulfing every flammable thing it could find. The sky above the woods continued to grow dark from the heavy ash and smoke that rose along with the bright red embers. Pitch-black tree limbs and bushes, accompanied by the gray haze and orange light show almost completely surrounded the Decepticons trapped inside the wooded circle. The fire had already found its way up the trees above them, destroying everything in the way.

Pushing the blue Energon towards the center of the circle, Cyclonus nervously glanced around. Off to his right, Soundwave and Laserbeak were trying desperately to save Ravage from the tangled mess of vines he was in before the fire could get there. The cybernetic panther growled as his fellow cassette accidently pecked at the black armor rather than the vine. But it technically was not the bird's fault, seeing as how Ravage was struggling the way he was.

To his left, Starscream and Scourge were standing around a wounded Galvatron. His acidic burns, only aggravated more by the heat, sat in splotches of blisters across his hide. Scourge, being no medic or let alone scientist, did his best to carefully tend to the wound with a gentle, icy breath. Starscream stood by, watching darkly, like a predator.

Behind him, Cyclonus noticed the two Sweeps originally with Scourge had taken action by using their newfound power to keep the fire at bay. The purple Decepticon hurriedly trotted over to them, watching carefully as they used their breath of Ice to keep the flames back.

"Anything I can do?" he asked worriedly, silently wishing he had an element of his own to use.

"Yeah," one replied, choking out a cough, "Tell Scourge that if we're not out of here soon, this whole place's gonna go up with us in it."

Cyclonus glanced back at Galvatron, who was now wailing in pain between his own coughing. "Can't you keep this up a little longer?" he nervously leaned back in hopes of a good answer.

"We're trying, Cyclonus," the other one said, "But there just isn't enough moisture in the air for us to keep going."  
The SIC sighed and nodded, "Okay, I'll see what I can do." Cyclonus was no doubt the most levelheaded of the other Decepticons. He, unlike Galvatron was able to communicate well in serious situations. If it had been his leader talking to the Sweeps, the purple Decepticon would have lost what little temper he already had and go off on them, even if they were just trying to help. The tall dragon moved quickly around the burning tree limbs that had fallen in his path and approached Starscream. He did a double take towards Galvatron, who was now trying to kill Scourge using whatever strength he had left.

"Starscream, what's the hold up? We need to get out of here – the Sweeps can't hold up forever," Cyclonus pleaded.

"His lord royal crybaby is throwing a fit over there," Starscream chuckled, directing the purple dragon's attention towards his leader, literally half of him covered in ice, and dark purple sparks flying from his mouth at every shout and foul word he screamed towards the shorter blue Decepticon.

"I'm serious, Starscream," he replied practically, "How soon can we get out of here?"

"And _I'm_ serious," the red Seeker countered, "Galvatron's whining is slowing us all down."

Behind them, a dark blue dragon appeared, covered head-to-toe in ash. Around his front ankles rested two burned, yet living Cassetticons. Once more, the electric blue Energon crystal was carefully perched on his back, held down by the flexible wings he sported. Soundwave stared ahead of them at Galvatron, completely ignoring the loud crash of yet another tree limb on the ground. He looked up at Cyclonus then to Starscream, then to the struggling Sweeps behind him, the fire pushing them closer inwards. If there was a time to act, it was now or never.

"Galvatron. Suggested course of action: evacuate wooded area. Danger level: abnormally high." The mechanized voice gave even Starscream a shiver. In his mind, it would never bother Starscream if the Decepticons died here and now; it would make seizing the army that much easier with the high-ranking officers out of the way. But yet, as much as he hated to admit it, he needed them. If he was to ever be returned to life, the jet knew he needed Galvatron and his help. For now, he would have to wait.

Gathering his strength, Galvatron abandoned a cowering Scourge and beat his massive wings. The still standing wood crackled as the fire closed in on the circle. The trees began to collapse on top of each other, and the sky became littered with bright orange sparks and even more smoke.

The Decepticons floated quietly above the scene. Even Starscream found a reason to stay mute.

Galvatron looked on in silence, "That dragon will pay for this. Anyone who dares to so much as touch me deserves to perish." The Decepticon leader placed a paw on his burnt shoulder and growled lightly at the contact. The blisters stood out vividly on his dark purple skin. The burns were scattered in patches on his body. They would take weeks, at least, to fully heal.

"Where'd you think he went?" Scourge asked quietly.

Starscream floated away from them and scanned around him, "He couldn't have gotten far, that's for sure. Cyclonus injured him pretty bad. By now he's probably weak beyond his own control. A very fine medic will be needed to fix up those injuries." The Seeker turned and faced a mountain, completely in the opposite direction of where Acid seemed to be heading. The land beyond the foot of the massive landmark was nothing but burned ground and small volcanoes. A large stone and brick wall surrounded its border. And slightly beyond it, a massive rock formation, complete with caves and stable structures, sat perfectly still, barren of all life. _If anything_, he surmised,_ that place has to be the best place to stay until this all blows over._

"I believe I have an idea about where we should go, but it would probably be best if we stay under the cover of the living parts of the forest." He turned back to Galvatron, suspicion plastered on the mech's face. Starscream gestured to the rocks far off in the distance. The sky was just as black as the smoke from the forest, despite it being daytime. Indeed, it did look like a good enough place to stay until they could figure everything out. But there were still a few things Galvatron was suspicious about.

Why there? What could possibly make Starscream want to go there? And moreover, why did they have to _walk_ all the way? Was this one of Starscream's tricks?

And it was. The former Decepticon could have cared less about where they were going, and more about power and making sure the other Decepticons listened to him. The Acid Dragon made no difference to him if he was alive or dead. That was not his priority.

"Starscream, why?" Galvatron interrupted his thoughts. He moved closer to the ghost.

Acting quickly, Starscream spoke, "Believe me, Galvatron. A spirit knows many things that one would not. I have a good feeling about this."

Cylinder and Rodimus watched as the green dragon landed on the edge of a cliff. Everything but the very precipice it was standing on was veiled in fog. The mist was thick enough that once he walked through it, he disappeared.

"Let's go, we're not losing him," Cylinder declared, landing and pushing through the clouded ridge. When she finally found her way through, the Aerialbot not only found the green dragon, but a large, stone city as well. A high wall protected the inside of the city. Two large statues guarded the entrance. The figures on the statues were both dragons, thin and lean, and both wore what appeared to be cloaks on their backs. Around them hung bright green drapes, similar to the color of the dragon. The material was decorated with a single insignia – a brighter green swirl erupting in sharp spikes around it. The material had been torn and burned in places, reducing them to nothing but rags. The green dragon regarded them somberly, and then continued past the front gate.

Everything beyond the entrance was dead silent, save for the footsteps of the wounded green reptile before Cylinder. Inside, a ragged plaza sat stone cold dead before several massive buildings. More statues lay scattered and destroyed about the area. Weeds and other foliage engulfed half of the buildings. Many construction projects around the area looked as though they had been undisturbed for years. To Cylinder's right, a large yet barely working fountain coughed up water from its nearly dry reservoirs. While almost completely invisible, a dirt-covered wall behind it depicted several large green dragons, also wearing cloaks like the statues out front. On the left, several buildings and what appeared to be shrines backed up to the mountainside. Most of their outer walls were left completely covered in ivy and weeds, rendering them outdated and useless if shelter was needed.

In the center of the large square, another large yet weathered statue stood guard of the dying city. Cut from stone, it resembled yet another cloaked dragon. Its body, much like the other dragon statues and images Cylinder had seen, was rather thin and long, as if there was a specific species of tall, green, and thin dragons.

Slowly, Rodimus approached from behind, carefully supporting his wounds. "I can only imagine what this place was like when other dragons lived here," he said, taking in the vast size of the nearly abandoned village.

Cylinder could imagine it, too. The young dragons running about the square, playing and frolicking in the tall grass, while their parents talked amongst themselves; the families enjoying their afternoon; the mass groups of dragons getting along, working together, to make this place beautiful – all of it, more than likely wiped out because someone became selfish, someone became corrupt enough to plunge this place into war, taking the hundreds, even thousands of dragons away from everything they once knew and loved. The Aerialbot knew exactly how that felt. Her own planet witnessed the same destruction.

Cylinder glanced at Rodimus, not even needing to read his mind to know that he was thinking a similar thing as well. She looked ahead at the green reptile, which apparently had found some type of wrap and was attempting to dress his own wound. Cautiously, the two Autobots approached, keeping in mind that if startled, the dragon could lash out at them.

The sound of footsteps caused the green dragon to raise his head and turn around. He could hardly believe his eyes at the sight of the blue and red dragons, and they, in turn could hardly believe him. Maybe it was the lack of pupils in his eyes, but Cylinder could tell that something was off about this dragon. He seemed traumatized, scared. Despite his massive height and wingspan, he appeared . . . weak. Even more unbelievable, the dragon was absolutely disgusted to see the two Autobots. He growled defensively and backed away, doing his best to hide the now forming limp at his front.

"What do you want?" he sneered in a foreign tongue, thankfully recognizable for the two Autobots, "Are you two working for _those _dragons?"

Almost instinctively, Cylinder and Rodimus backed up, readying themselves incase he tried to pounce. "What? No, of course not," Rodimus chirped worriedly, glancing at the silent blue femme next to him.

Though she probably knew exactly what the dragon was talking about, Cylinder still felt the need to ask: "Who?"

"Several dragons attacked me, they desecrated a sacred place, and they nearly killed me. I was lucky enough to get out." He gestured to his heavily bleeding wound, cringing at the pain it brought, "A tall purple one bit me, I'm afraid, and something else – I'm not sure what – made me run into a tree, which has left me pretty dazed."

Rodimus shook his head in disbelief, but Cylinder perked up instantly. To her, it was comforting news, to say the least. "I know _exactly _who they are," she exclaimed, a little too cheerfully.

"Oh, and? What's their deal?" the dragon curiously moved forward, ignoring his previous feelings towards the two.

Rodimus stepped forward, showing the dragon his massively injured side to show that he had no plans of attacking the larger creature, "Well, that tall one you said bit you – his name is Cyclonus."

"I'm listening."

"And that thing you said that somehow made you run into that tree was Starscream," Cylinder replied pragmatically. "But, what about the others? What did they look like?"

"Well," the dragon sighed, recalling the information, "There were three light blue ones – one of them seemed to be leading the other two, yet they looked almost identical, so I wasn't sure who was who. They all breathed the element of Ice."

"That has to be Scourge and the Sweeps," Rodimus looked at Cylinder, who only nodded in reply.

"And, there was this dark blue one. He had two . . . metal creatures with him. One resembled a bird; the other, I have no idea. Perhaps it was a cat of some sort."

"Soundwave," both Autobots replied in unison. _Great. Now we know that Laserbeak and Ravage are still robots. Lucky us. _Cylinder growled over the transmission she sent to the Autobot leader.

"I think what surprised me most was their leader," the dragon continued, "He was a fiery one, and had a rather uncontrollable temper. I've never seen such an outburst." He sighed, "I don't know if you saw that fire back there or not, but it was his Dark Electricity that started it. He destroyed the woods . . . what a monster."

"That's Galvatron," Cylinder concluded, "He has a tendency to be uncontrollable at times."

The green dragon nodded in response, "I guess. How, may I ask, did you know all of this?" apparently still not fully buying into the fact that Rodimus and Cylinder were trustworthy.

Caught off guard, both Autobots had to think fast to come up with a good enough lie to not only make it seem believable, but also to convince the dragon that it was the truth. Cylinder had picked up a trick or two for doing such things from fellow Autobots around the base back on Earth.

As Rodimus began to speak thoughtlessly out of the pressure and awkward silence around them, the Aerialbot let a small _No_ pass through his processor.

"I'm sure there are plenty of dragon tribes out here, right?" She smiled as warmly as she could without making it seem she was trying to mess with the green dragon's mind.

"Of course. The tribes are usually made up of stray dragons. Why?"

"Well, our tribe," Cylinder made sure to emphasize the word a bit so Rodimus could buy into it, "Is at a huge rivalry with theirs. They've killed many of our people, and they destroy our territories and shelters without any thought. That's why we're out here – we've been sent to find new land away from them for the rest of our dragons to settle without worry."

"Oh," the dragon remarked, "Forgive me for my previous assumptions about you earlier, I had no idea. Let's start over then, huh? My name's Acid." Sluggishly, he held out his good paw for Cylinder to shake. Rodimus followed. "Goodness, sir, what happened to your side? Did those dragons hurt you?"

Rodimus looked at his injured side and shook his head sorrowfully, "No. Hunting accident. My name's Rodimus, by the way," he gestured to the Aerialbot next to him, "This is Cylinder." She nodded slightly.

"Oh," Acid regarded his own wound. If he did not dress it soon, he knew he would begin to loose consciousness from the loss of blood. "I know how you feel."

Cylinder's medical instincts began to power up like a long forgotten machine. Acting on impulse, she stepped forward and held out her own paw, "Let me see what I can do for you." Without argument, Acid acknowledged her request and held out his thin, bloody arm. The femme carefully guided him over to the reservoir with Rodimus close behind. On approaching the nearly dried fountain, she gently dipped his paw into the shallow pool, the blood instantly washing away. Acid motioned to the wraps and rags Rodimus was now carrying, signaling the red Autobot to give her one of them.

After finishing cleaning the wound, Cylinder tightly wrapped it to prevent any further bleeding. Acid stepped back impressed with the shorter blue dragon's work.

"Wow, where'd you learn to do something like that?" he asked curiously.

"She's a medic," Rodimus answered for her, smiling slightly in her direction despite the dark look he was getting.

"Well she's very good at it," Acid chuckled. Cylinder only responded with another nod of her head.

"Uh, so, Acid," Cylinder said, changing the subject a bit too quickly, "Do you . . . you know, _live_ here?"

"Yes, I do. I know it's not much." The green dragon moved forward, motioning the other two Autobots to follow. "This place used to be a bustling metropolis. Thousands of dragons such as myself lived here, in the City of the Acid Dragons. That is, until the Dark Forces arrived." He tensed a bit at the sound of the name, but relaxed just as quickly. "I was young when they attacked this village," he lowered his voice as if others were trying to hear him, "Hardly old enough to begin my training. You see, each dragon, as I'm sure you know, is born with one or more specific elemental ability, and they begin their training for combat at a young age. I was a purebred Acid Dragon, hence my name. But before I could learn the ancient traditions of my people, the Dark Forces attacked the city. They destroyed everything, and killed nearly half the population in only a few hours. Even my parents perished to them."

Acid made his way inside a run-down stone building, filled with even more statues and relics from what seemed to be ages ago to him. He found an old chest hidden in the corner of the building and opened it, pulling out a large, bright green cloak. Its golden collar rested perfectly around his neck, and supported a large, lime-green crystal that hung from it. On the shoulders of the cloak, an insignia similar to the ones Cylinder found on the flags outside gleamed beautifully in the light that managed to escape through the cracks of the worn ceiling. It rested on Acid's back and draped almost completely to the floor. Immediately, both Autobots recognized the cloak from the images of the other dragons around the city.

"As I was saying," Acid finished fastening the cloak around him before continuing, "Eventually our entire species died out, leaving only one left."

"You," Cylinder concluded.

"Me."

"How'd you escape?" Rodimus asked in disbelief.

"I guess I was lucky. No one ever thought a tiny dragon like myself would survive. They were wrong. But, of course, loosing my family and fellow Acid dragons did hurt me. You see every true Acid dragon was built thin, tall, and fast. We couldn't take the hard hits. We always needed to eat to keep from becoming underweight. When the Dark Forces cut us off from our food and hit us hard with the heavy fighting styles they adopted, it really didn't leave us much of a chance in winning. Our species became extinct, and with it, every tradition, every practice, and our very culture – it all vanished.

"It must be horrible to be the last of your kind," Cylinder sympathized.

"It is," Acid agreed, "And being the last one, I unfortunately had to take up the reigns as Acid Guardian."

"A Guardian? What's That?" Rodimus asked without thinking, causing Cylinder to hiss over his processor.

_Rodimus. Really? You don't ask that! I'm sure every dragon knows what the Pit a Guardian is. Now he's going to be suspicious with us again!_

_Sorry, I wasn't thinking_, he shot back.

"What he meant to say," Cylinder began, "Is that we come from a tribe where our people do not understand the true origin of traditional customs and the different cultures of this world, or really how anything in particular began."

"Well I'll be honest with you, Cylinder, I'm not too perfect with the information myself," Acid replied, "But I do know a few things about this place."

"Well I'm curious to know," Rodimus smiled over his pain, somewhat expecting Cylinder to yell at him again.

"Like I said, I'm not perfectly clear on everything, but I can tell you what I do know." Acid cleared his throat and grew serious. "Like any other planet, this world started as nothing, and by some chance, or by some miraculous plan, this universe came into existence, and slowly, our very own planet began to form, just like the many others out there. Do I believe that there's other intelligent life somewhere besides here? Yes. We just haven't got the technology to find out or not."

Rodimus and Cylinder exchanged quick glances before returning their attention to Acid.

"After years of this place taking the numerous accounts of intergalactic torture and formation, the first life began to appear as single-celled organisms."

"So this place has always been organic?" Rodimus asked.

Acid paused and looked down at the smaller dragon, one brow archer higher than the other, "Organic?"

Cylinder mentally kicked herself for not catching it. She, too, had been too curious about the planet, which caused her to ignore what Rodimus was thinking. "I think what he means was that this place, uh . . ."

"The Dragon Realms," Acid added without haste.

"Yeah, that." Cylinder liked the sound of the planet's name. It seemed fitting to her. "What he meant was that this place was always . . . abundant with natural resources instead of something . . . cybernetic, I guess." Cylinder smiled less confidently, but enough to make the Guardian continue.

"Well, if that truly exists, then, yes." He sighed and found where he was cut off. "Anyway, the first life forms began to form, and slowly, through millions of years of evolving, the first dragons appeared. Unfortunately, so did the Dark Forces with them. You see, the first dragons found that they possessed the ability to connect to the environment; they found that they could use their senses to become one with the world around them by harnessing the powers of the natural world. They began using the natural 'elements,' which later evolved into what we use today.

"The first elemental dragons were the Fire, Ice, Earth, Electric, Dark Fury, and Galactic Dragons. Those six elements were purebred, and the basis for every other element today. Each of the six tribes of dragons banded together to form an alliance. They selected one representative and master of their respective element to become their cultural leader, or an Elemental Guardian. The Dark Fury dragon, known as Marchosias, was the strongest of the other five Guardians, but due to his impulsive and deceiving nature, the other four Guardians agreed that the Galactic Guardian would be the best choice to be the overseer of the others, and leader of the dragons.

They constructed a large city for the dragons to live in, and for a time, everyone lived together in peace. The Fire, Ice, Electricity, Earth, and Dark Fury Guardians remained in the city to watch over the other dragons, and the Galactic Guardian would use his element to enable him to live on the moon, where he could watch over everything better.

"But Marchosias, after living peacefully in the city for so long, began to discover an even darker side to him. He realized that there was more to himself and his power than what he was doing and what the other Guardians were limiting him to. He figured, that if he had the power control one group of dragons, why not more? Why not the entire planet? And why not control even more than that? He took his idea to the other Guardians, and sat in disbelief as every one of them looked on in horror at what Marchosias had become. When they refused to allow him to go any further, he retreated to the darkest part of the Realms, where daytime was non-existent and darkness covered the area in one eternal shadow: the scorched earth, as it is now called. He became enraged and on the brink of insanity, but not without leaving several dragons influenced by his ideas. They came to him, fully intrigued with his intentions. As a result, they came back to the city and began to slowly destroy it from the inside.

"It started with lies and rumors that spread from one dragon to another, until the entire city turned against itself. Dragons began taking sides and breaking off into factions based on their element or culture. The Guardians saw this disunity beginning to form and confronted Marchosias and his followers about it. A full-out battle ensued. Dragons were forced to take sides in the fight. Towards the end, Marchosias found himself hopelessly outnumbered, so he harnessed the true power of Dark Fury, the first dark element, to do the unthinkable. From the very ground itself, creatures began to form out of it. Rocks, grass, and dirt were given life and tempted to follow Marchosias as apart of his new army; hence, the Dark Forces. Their very hearts were poisoned to the core. The venom drove so deep that not even the brightest element could save it from the eternal shadow it was forever locked in.

"Despite Marchosias' clever plan, the Guardians were smarter, and managed to create a storm of their own powers, their own fury to cripple his force enough into retreat. Marchosias found that his dragon followers had fled the battle earlier, and with that, he lost control of himself, becoming what one would consider fully insane. He unleashed his own power against the five guardians, but their combined power overwhelmed him, nearly destroying the Realms in the process. Weakened, but not defeated, the Guardians sealed Marchosias away in the core of the planet, where he would suffer the consequences for his treachery without dying.

"But even in his absence, Marchosias' forces still lived. The dragons, while they still abandoned him, continued to spread darkness throughout the world, destroying hope and courage along the way. The dark creatures became savage and wild as the years passed, killing everything that came even remotely close to them. They returned to the ground, where they still wait for Marchosias to lead them once more.

"The damage on the inside of the city was even worse, though. Many dragons, even the Elemental Guardians, found themselves splitting apart. Upon the deaths of the now very old Guardians, the alliance split, some traveling far away, others staying in the city. The separatist groups set up their own cities where they could live in peace away from their own kind.

"However, some groups began to mix and history soon found that it was repeating itself; groups separated, and wherever they settled, even their own element began to change. As they adapted to their environment, so did their elements. Offspring were born with more than one element at times; others began to loose the traditional ways of the original five elements. It came to a point where some dragons began creating their own tribes and groups based on elemental status.

"From the Fire Dragons came the elements of Blue and White Fire, Ash, Gas, Neon, Magma, Acid, Fire Storm, and Inferno. I think you probably notice how a lot of these sound similar. That's because they are, but where the true element evolved and originated is what the name of it is based on.

"From our cold friends the Ice Dragons, we received Water, Bubble, Storm and Snowstorm, Frost, and Hurricane.

"The Earth Dragons gave us the elements of Earthquake, Sludge, Sand, Steel, Amber, Dust, Crystal, and the several adaptions of Emerald.

"The Electric Dragons provided the elements of Light, Storm, Thunder, Laser, and Plasma.

"The Galactic Dragons gave us a vast array of cosmic elements, including Spirit, Time, Aurora, Godly, Celestial, Lunar, Solar, and Wind." Acid paused to make sure the two dragons were still listening, and then continued.

"And, unfortunately, from the largest species of Dark Dragons, many powerful elements integrated themselves into our everyday lives: Fear, Nightmare, Blood, Poison, Blight, Tornado, Black Hole, Darkness, Chaos, Sound, and the several adaptions of Shadow. Of course, some of those elements are very useful nowadays, but I'll be honest with you, I am not particularly fond of dragons with darker elements.

"What's interesting about the elements, though, after millions of years of intermixing tribes and cultures, after hundreds of element-based cities were set up, some of them began to mix, and create new elements entirely on its own. For example, we now have Shadow Fire, Blue Electric Fire, Poison Bubble, Yin Yang, Shadow Ice, Dark Electricity, which this 'Galvatron' was breathing, and so on. It actually brought many dragons back together. Guardians were reinstated as the main power of the different tribes, and many dragons moved back to the original city where their ancestors originated. For now, everything is peaceful. Though I fear that the sudden activity of these dragons I encountered may end that peace soon."

"Maybe," Cylinder agreed reluctantly.

Acid walked through the darkened rooms of the building until he came to a room with another cloaked statue, "This is Belthazar, the first Acid Dragon and Guardian."

"So, every statue and image with a cloaked dragon represents a guardian?" Rodimus asked inquisitively, eyes widening at the sight massive rock structure. It made him feel tiny, which was very abnormal considering how large his real form was compared to others. Like Acid, the dragon was thin and long. Thick, plated horns contrasted to his small head, also without pupils in his eyes. The cloak around his body almost looked too big to fit. And a long, bladeless tail curved around the body, poised as if it were ready to lash out.

"Have there ever been any female guardians?" Cylinder asked in amazement.

"Oh, yes," Acid replied, "Probably even more so than males."

"What a history," she smiled, "I'm sure our tribe will love to hear about it."

"Glad I could help."

"I have a question," Rodimus said, "If there are so many dragons living in other cities, and you are the last Acid Dragon, then why don't you just live with them, with the other Guardians? I'm sure they'd be happy to take you."

Acid sighed, "I'm sure they would, too. But, I have other duties to this place, my kind. As an Acid dragon, I have duties to what is known as the Trine Guard." Both of the dragons titled their heads in confusion before the Guardian could continue. "You see, when Marchosias was sealed away in the core of the Realms, the place used to access it lied within the territory of the scorched earth. His central power and influence still remains there today."

"How do you know where it is?" Cylinder asked. Acid turned and continued walking through the darkened halls until he reached a balcony. The light from the outside beckoned to them, begging them to come bask in its warming rays. Shockingly, the area out here looked better taken care of than the rest of the city, which was a major accomplishment considering all of the damage that had been done.

"I've tried my best to clean this place up," Acid admitted, "But I know it'll never be the same. You see those darkened plains out there," he said, changing the subject, "The ones where no grass is growing and the sky is dark?" He pointed off to the left, where Rodimus and Cylinder's eyes followed. A dark, shadowed land that both Autobots had not seen before covered literally the entire Western part of the Valley and even further beyond that point. Small volcanoes lined up in rings around the perimeter of the land, and several were currently erupting. The smoke from them blocked the sun and made it hard to see any further, but Cylinder, with her sharp Aerialbot eyes, was able to barely make-out a large rock formation that nestled itself deep inside the area. The smoke made it vague and very hard to see, but she knew it was there. The sudden realization came to Cylinder as soon as she felt the Voice speaking to her. _Jackpot_, it whispered.

"That's where Marchosias was sealed away. That rock formation guards the entrance to the core," she concluded.

Acid nodded, "Yes, that's where he is. Now, Cylinder, look there." At the very border of the land, surrounded entirely by lava, the blue Autobot could see a large wall and a gate. Acid moved his hand again, this time to show them what he was holding. Both Autobots had not even noticed the tiny stone Acid had been holding all this time.

"The Trine Guard was an alliance established between the first Acid, Sludge, and Magma Dragons, years and years after the original battle between Marchosias and the other Guardians. Dark activity in the area aroused the attentions of the other Guardians, and began to worry the citizens of the numerous cities in the Realms. Long since forgotten creatures of the original Dark Forces began to awaken after a long sleep, and began to attack innocent dragons and other creatures. They and many Dark Dragons were able to go in and out of the scorched earth with ease. Marchosias was becoming more and more powerful, so the Guardians decided they would act before anything got too bad. Three Elemental Guardians, the ones of Sludge, Acid, and Magma, volunteered to create a force that would not only protect the dragons from Marchosias and his forces, but also keep them out of the scorched earth.

"Years ago, before I took on the role of Acid Guardian, the lands were simply guarded by the vast numbers of Magma and Sludge Dragons, and the Acid Dragons oversaw and warned them of any potential threat. Sadly though, being apart of the Trine Guard made our species very vulnerable to attacks from the outlying Dark Forces. That's why I'm the last of my kind: the Dark Forces wanted to drive us into extinction. So, after the attack on the city and my unwillingness to take up the reigns as Guardian, I decided a better defense was needed to keep the forces out without risking the lives of so many dragons.

"This," he pointed to the stone in his paw, "Was the result of my thoughts. This is the Dragon Stone, a stone I cut from pure diamond and infused with the combined power of the Acid, Magma, and Sludge Elements. I took it to the other two Guardians, Vesuvius of the Magma Element, and Serina of Sludge. Together, we shaped the stone so it could work the way we wanted it to. The result: an indestructible substance that could cut through any object. We used it to cut through the toughest rock on the planet, and lined those rocks to form a wall around the vast border of the scorched earth. The wall was high and smooth enough so grounded creatures could not scale it, and the entire place was surrounded by lava, making it far to hot to fly across without getting seriously burned. Only Magma Dragons possessed that ability. The only way to get through was the gate that led in and out.

"With the Magma city inside the scorched earth, Vesuvius and the rest of his Magma Dragons were easily able to guard the gate to the land beyond. No one got by them without consent of he, Serina, and myself. Serina and her Sludge dragons were left to guard the three keys we made that unlocked the gate and helped provide travelers with a safe passage inside. Each one of those keys lie somewhere buried in each one of those three lakes," Acid regarded the area off to his right. There, three large lakes covered the span of the Eastern area. Both Cylinder and Rodimus agreed that Acid's method of protection was indeed a great idea.

"Sadly," Acid continued, "Things took a turn for the worse when the Magma Dragons were attacked, and this time, there were no survivors. Serina and I arrived just too late. As both the Dark Forces and the dragons fell, Vesuvius used the remainder of his power to cast-out the demons, but so much that it ended up costing him his life. He was alive long enough for us to watch him go – the last Magma Dragon. Thus ended the true power and alliance of the Trine Guard." Acid lowered his head as he spoke those last few words.

"And let me guess," Cylinder spoke quietly, "They came after Serina and the Sludge Dragons next."

"Yes," he replied, "They did. But thankfully for them, Serina was smarter than the Dark Forces, and had learned a thing or two from before. She used a special berry bush that was planted around the lakes to fight them on more equal footing I guess you could say. The berries had special properties that enabled the dragons to breathe underwater. So, the dragons moved underneath the surface, and fought the Forces from there. Though many still died, Serina was able to use the submerged sand and mud against them, burying the creatures under mounds and mounds of Sludge."

"In the end, Serina and the remainder of her dragons took over the gates to the scorched earth, enduring the terrible heat and constant attacks from the outside Dark Forces. Now, I not only watch for them, but I also watch over the lakes, and the Dragon Stone." He placed the Stone on the ground and sighed. "I had this protected in a shrine in the woods, but that 'Galvatron' destroyed it. He actually thought the Stone was useless. Maybe, if he had given me more time to explain it, he would have understood its true power, but now that I think of it, I'm glad I didn't. Who knows what he would've done then?"

"Yeah," Rodimus rolled his eyes, "That's sounds like our Galvy, huh, Cyl?"

"Yeah," Cylinder agreed silently. Her normal bright blue markings seemed to dim a bit. "We need to find them."

"What?" Rodimus jumped back in surprise, ignoring the side pain he received with it. "Cylinder, are you insane? We're horribly outnumbered, and we have absolutely no idea where they are!"

_You know where they're going, Autobot. Follow them. They'll be there._ The Voice chirped irritably, causing Cylinder to growl.

"I have this feeling that they're heading for the scorched earth. I think they might have the thing we need," she nodded a slight hint to the Blue Energon, "Trust me, Rodimus, they'll be there," she quoted the Voice to her leader, who only nodded reluctantly in response.

"It would make sense, considering who they are," Acid surmised, though it may not have been the case, considering they were technically not dragons. "If that is the case though," he continued, "They're going to have one hell of a time getting there without those keys."

"Unfortunately, Galvatron has a way of persuading people, if you know what I mean," Cylinder admitted. Acid seemed to understand, because as soon as she had said that, he dashed back into the dark hallway of the building. He returned to the two confused Autobots several minutes later with two leather bags. Inside, there was food and other supplies for them. They were designed to rest on their backs without discomfort. He handed one to each of them, making sure to give Rodimus the lighter one so that it would not aggravate his injuries even more.

"You'll need these for the trip," he smiled kindly. Cylinder found it easy to get past Acid's somewhat terrifying appearance now that she had met him. Acid was a sweet, kind-hearted dragon that meant no harm to anyone. He reminded her of several Autobots back on Cybertron.

After fastening the packs onto themselves, Cylinder found a small bundle of wraps. She walked over to Rodimus and began to wrap his injured side, finding no complaints from the shorter Autobot. Acid gave them specific instructions on how to get what they needed for the gate. "There's one key buried somewhere at the bottom of each lake," he said, "They are all in the shape of spheres; one is red, another is green, and the other one is orange. Use the red berries to help you breathe underwater, then find those three keys and bring them to Serina at the gate. She's going to burry you in questions, but just tell her the truth. However, _don't _use the keys. I know that sounds useless and makes the search a waste of time, but trust me, you wont be able to talk to her unless you have those keys. Hide them as soon as you meet with her. When those dragons get there, you do everything in your power to drive them off. I don't care where you go, just do it."

"But, what if they attempt to get through and succeed?" Rodimus asked in concern, tensing as Cylinder finished wrapping his massive bruise with the remainder of wraps she had found.

"Then you go through and force them out. Look, I don't care what it takes, but no one can bring Marchosias back. There's no telling what will happen if it occurs." Acid said straightforwardly. While doing this may not have been the Decepticons' intentions, it seemed to Cylinder (and the Voice) that they would still be headed towards the scorched earth anyway.

"Thank you, Acid, for everything," Cylinder whispered grimly, before beating her wings and lifting herself off of the ground. "We will help you and the rest of the Guard in any way we can."

"One thing: Last I remember, there was a massive serpent that lives in one of the lakes. I've never seen him, but that doesn't mean it's still there or not. Stay focused and be prepared for anything. You'll never know when the Dark Forces will attack, either." He smiled proudly and let them fly off towards the first lake below.

Little did Cylinder know that a special stone had found its way into her bag.

The afternoon sun shimmered off of the silver dragon's scales, giving her an overall white-ish appearance. Light blue horns and plates adorned her thin body, and a dark gray spike decorated her tail. The soft rattle of chains clamored every time she took a step through the marshy field around her. Those chains, old and on the brink of rusting, marked her – a helpless young dragon, chained to a wall and left to die, only to be saved by her mother, the last being that made a difference in her life. They swayed with her movements, draped carefully around her neck, tail, and left paw.

The moonstone on the neck chain left by her mother was the only thing that seemed to keep the now young adult from forgetting, forgetting what happened, what caused everything in her life to change.

Her father was not much help, either. Being the current Galactic Guardian, Coldfang barely had any time for his own daughter anymore, except for the occasional training sessions every now and then. One would think that she, being next in line for the most powerful Guardian position in the Dragon Realms, would spend time with him much more often, but, no. No, she was left here to wander the valley, which once belonged to her mother and the other Frost Dragons. This place was once a frigid polar ice cap, but melted away after the wrath of the Dark Forces. The Frost Dragons, brought together through the bond of her mother and her father of the Galactic Dragons, was supposed to be a sign of great peace and prosperity, but the Dark Forces had other ideas in mind. They desecrated the icy lands and destroyed the city, like the many others they had ruined before, taking what they could and leaving the rest for dead.

One such thing they took was the young dragon. They kept her trapped in the scorched earth, where there would never be enough moisture in the air or cold temperatures for her to use her powerful elements of Galactic, Ice, Wind, Spirit, Godly, Water, Time, and Celestial, yet she still had numerous amounts of uncontrollable energy – energy that was slowly being used to empower the Darkness within the core of the very Realms. It was her mother's brave actions and her father's assistance that saved her, but it was also the ultimate cause of the Frost Dragoness' death.

The silver dragon absentmindedly regarded the dark blue stone that hung around her neck before continuing her search. The two dragons, the ones she saved from one of many of the Dark Forces, had disappeared before she woke up, compelling her to find them and maybe assist the poor things that had unknowingly wandered into her territory. After all, if her mother could be hospitable towards strangers, why would she not be able to?

She sniffed the air as a steady breeze blew by, picking up the strange smells that came with it. Automatically, she could recognize the faint scent of two dragons, just about her age, and hopelessly lost. She looked back at the fire behind her, and silently prayed that the two dragons had nothing to do with it, and that if they did, they were alright. She also prayed that the fire would veer away from the valley, and by the direction the wind was blowing, she assured herself that she would not have to worry.

Coming over a ridge, she scanned the valley below for what seemed to be the millionth time that day. It should never be this hard to find a dark blue and bright red dragon, but nevertheless, the two strangers somehow managed to avoid her watchful eye. She sniffed again and glanced around her. To the far north sat the dying City of the Acid Dragons. Overgrown, and weathered, the dragoness started making bets with the local wildlife to see how long the city and its last surviving member would last.

She bet it would only take a few years.

As she continued down the beaten pathway between the tall, wet grass, the silver dragon could have sworn she saw something fly past out of the corner of her eye. As she turned, the look of pure shock covered her face.

The dragons. She had found them. The curious reptile could hardly contain the excitement for her new personal achievement. Slowly, a smile spread across her scaly snout, revealing numerous sharp, whitened teeth. A small hint of laughter escaped her lips, the sound carried beyond her reach by the wind.

Eagerly, she spread her impossibly large blue and gray wings, preparing to take flight once more. She could personally argue that her flying was the best in the world, if not, the universe. As the pair of wings spanned their widest, a sharp, lightning-quick voice boomed, shaking the dragoness to her core.

"What are you _doing_?" it growled.

She turned and lowered her head and wings in a sign of "you caught me." The sky around her instantly grew darker. Clouds began to pull themselves together, enclosing the young dragon until she could see nothing but darkness. Thunder rumbled above, and the ground trembled. In front of her, a puddle of water shimmered to life, each ripple causing the once placid liquid to glow a bright blue. Tiny embers of blue flames enveloped her, empowering her body and revitalizing her strength. The ripples in the pool water soon began to take a shape, just barely forming the image of a face similar in structure to the silver dragon's own.

She gazed into the pool, overlooking the detail of the landscape behind the dragon and instead at his massive body. His skin was as dark as the lakes beyond the valley, a rich blue that covered him with gleaming scales. Even darker, almost black horns and plates decorated him, marking him as a full-grown and well-respected elder dragon. His very wing membrane resembled the night sky the dragoness saw every time the sun went down, and the sharp blades that adorned the tips of the massive limbs poured forth showers of glittering moon dust with every move he made. A dark cloak, gilded with flecks of gold and bright gems, along with the symbol of the Galactic Dragons, marked his authority as the ruler of the Realms. But what always amazed the dragoness the most were his eyes. As dark and beautiful as the universe itself, they glistened as brightly as the stars would, bringing forth light that would otherwise leave the void around it cold and dark forever. It always reminded her that her father, the Galactic Guardian, did have a spark of life in him; he was not always as cold as she had thought him to be.

"I am not going to ask again: What are you _doing_?" Coldfang growled, making the water in the puddle rise and fall, blurring his image.

Annoyed with the question that she knew he knew the answer to, she growled in response, "What does it look like I'm doing? I'm going to help them."

"That is no excuse to leave the valley," he snapped back, "You are to remain here to train."

"You don't rule me," she sneered, "You left me here. Therefore I think I deserve a little freedom; you and I both know that if mom were in this position, she would have gone out of her way to help those two. You saw what happened to the red one – they need our help."

"Silver," he spoke her name, voice low and filled with icy murder, "Don't you dare speak to me like that again. You have no idea who they are, or what they could do. You may be a powerful dragoness, but that doesn't mean that they aren't."

Silver narrowed her eyes and brought her face as close to the pool as she dared, keeping in mind that there was only a thin layer of water separating her from the Galactic Guardian. "And I suppose you know them better than I do?" she shot in reply, tail flicking in irritation behind her.

Coldfang opened his mouth to speak, but shut it just as quickly, averting his eyes from the questioning gaze of his daughter and soon-to-be Galactic Guardian. "Look," he said as calmly as he could, "There's something about those two that does not make me trust them. They're not from around here. Young one, you are my only descendant, and I'm not about ready to let you get caught up in something as dangerous as this."

Lowering her wings, Silver sighed. Coldfang's one sign of affection had begun to poke through the solid emotional walls he had built up around himself, and once he began to open up, his walls came crumbling down.

The dragoness looked at the landscape behind her father. A large temple, larger than any other city in the Realms, spanned the vast surface of the moon. Dragons of all colors and sizes played about the temple's inner wall. Many of them wore dazzling and intricate cloaks, marking them as royalty or upper class dragons. These dragons were some of many of Coldfang's trusted advisors and court members, and all were equally needed as much as the next dragon. Silver knew that somewhere, among them, her mother dwelled. After she had passed on, Coldfang had brought her to the moon, where her spirit could live with him and some of the other Galactic Dragons.

"I want to see her," Silver finally said, changing the subject.

"You can't," came the simple reply. Silver knew the rules about the Guardians and the high-ranking officials. None of them were allowed to have any contact with their offspring out of fear that the Dark Forces might come after them. The only reason she was allowed to see Coldfang, and Coldfang only, was because she was his successor, and she needed to be trained in the ways of a Galactic Guardian. She felt blessed enough to at least talk to him, even if she did hate him sometimes for leaving her alone. Galactic Guardians were the only ones who had offspring successors rather than chosen ones. The Galactic Guardian position had been held in her lineage since the beginning of time.

"Fine," Silver paused and looked ahead of her. All she could see were dark, cloudy patches. Spreading her wings, a powerful gust of Wind erupted from her slicing a hole right through the cloud cover. The gray dragoness could vaguely see the forms of the two dragons heading towards the lakes miles away from where she was now. "I'm still going," she said firmly into the pool. "I know it's probably stupid, but they need me. I have to go."

Coldfang's gentle, fatherly voice returned to it's usual cross and sour speech, "No, you're not. You will _not _leave this valley."

Knowing that he could not stop her if he tried, Silver again lowered her head and spread her wings. Before propelling her agile form into the air, she turned back and whispered, "I'm sorry."


	8. Chapter 7 - Three Keys

Chapter 7 – Three Keys

As soon as Rodimus and Cylinder had landed on the shores of the first lake, both Autobots began their search of the red berries Acid had said could help them breathe underwater. And if they wanted those keys, there was no question that the two needed them desperately. Otherwise, half of their search would be taken up by the constant need to surface and breathe over and over again. Rodimus had even resorted to digging in the sand for them – his desperation becoming clear as he burrowed.

He abruptly stopped, though, when Cylinder shouted, "I think I found them!" The Autobot leader left his sand hole and approached the blue femme, who was standing in front of an impossibly large bush. Its leaves sat in clumps of dark greens, sharp and thick like a cactus. Even more good news to the Autobots: tiny, red berries formed large bunches scattered about the bush.

Reaching out her paw, Cylinder took the bunch closest to her and inspected the berries. Never before had she have to examine her food before consuming it. All Cybertronian food came in the same form, with the same ingredients, every time. Now, being organic, the food options opened up a huge deal to both of them – and their reluctance to eat it also followed suit.

"We have to eat them," Cylinder urged Rodimus, who was just as nervous to bite into them as she was.

"You sure this is the right berry?" he asked hesitantly, gazing upon their waxy red coats.

"Do you see any other red berries around here?" she asked, followed by a slight shake of his head. "This is the one," she continued. The maroon dragon nodded and took off his pack, placing it under the bush. Cylinder followed.

Holding up the berry cluster Rodimus took a small bite of it. The raw taste of sour juices made him cringe as soon as they hit his tongue. They stimulated every taste bud that he did not want stimulated. Having enough of the rotten taste, he spit the berries out, using his paw to wipe his tongue of any excess taste before it went back into his mouth.

Cylinder sat amused yet disappointed at Rodimus' episode. Yes, the berries tasted awful, but as much as she hated them, she needed them. Swallowing the remainder of the bunch, she approached the Autobot leader, who had now gone to the method of sticking his entire head in the water to hopefully wash out the awful taste.

"Stop it," she whacked his tail with her own, causing the mech to jerk his head out of the water and stare sharply at her, eyes narrowing from the contact.

"That stuff tastes like scrap! What do you expect me to do?" he complained.

"Eat it. We need to find those keys and I can't do it alone. You have to get over their taste and deal," Cylinder growled, holding out a fresh cluster of the red berries. She shoved them in Rodimus' face.

Taking them, he tried to come up with reasoning for his failure to eat them, "It's not my fault I've been eating Energon my whole life! Blame the idiots who thought it was a good idea to only have one food item for us to consume."

"Then go whine to Magnus so he can change it when we get back," she countered, "Now eat it."

Sighing in defeat, Rodimus complied and quickly swallowed the disgusting berries and their sour juices. After a few moments of nothing, a new feeling washed over him. Though this feeling was not completely foreign, it did feel strange to have it again. All of Rodimus' airways closed up, yet he was still able to "breathe" and retain consciousness. The same thing happened to Cylinder as well, only she took it less nervously, and focused more on the fact that it needed to be done.

"Okay," she said, wading into the shallow water of the first lake. "You ready? How's your side?"

Rodimus looked down at his bandaged side and moved slightly. The sound of cracked bones rubbing against his body did not sound pleasing to the audio, but at least the wraps would help hold them in a better place than they were before. The Autobot leader nodded, and with that, both he and the Aerialbot disappeared below the once tranquil waters.

Being beneath the surface without needing to come up for air was not an unusual feeling for both Autobots as they trudged through the water with ease. Rodimus found, as the two got deeper, that the light began to disappear. Darkness spanned the vast area of the lake's floor. Thankfully, Cylinder's markings provided plenty of light for the two to see.

_So, Acid said we're supposed to be looking for three keys buried below the floor of the lake. _Cylinder's voice came over Rodimus' processor, and he nodded in response.

_He also said to watch out for some type of sea dragon. _For Rodimus, the only way to communicate back to Cylinder was to think about what he was going to say, and she would automatically pick it up. The trick to it was making sure that his thoughts stayed low, and away from her expert scanners. Almost nothing was kept a secret when she was around, which made it particularly hard for 'bots who wanted to keep something personal, _especially_ from her.

_That's probably the least of our worries_, she replied,_ I really doubt there's a giant sea dragon down here. Acid even said how the lakes were greatly disturbed during the fight between the Dark Forces and the Sludge Dragons. The odds of some random creature surviving that are pretty slim. Besides, even if it still were alive, we could take it._

_How are you so sure?_

_You have doubts?_

_I'm just worried. What if we underestimate it, like you have a tendency of doing? _Cylinder actually paused and considered Rodimus' point for a moment. In truth, her actions sometimes did border on impulsiveness, especially when it came to taking on foes that had a large advantage over her, whether it was in size, skill, aim, or strength. Though she could hardly blame herself; it was in her programming to use the strategy of "look-before-you-leap-and-hope-it-works."

_If it makes you happy, I'll let you call the shots before I act._

_Really? That doesn't sound like you. Why?_

_Well_, she began,_ You are my leader. You're the one who calls things on the battlefield, not me._

Rodimus thought for a moment but turned towards Cylinder. Never before had she respected him for being the Autobot leader, let alone acknowledged the fact that he was. Something had happened to her after he passed-out the night before, he was sure of it. No 'bot, especially Cylinder, could change their thought process and beliefs just like that over night. Though the question was, what exactly did happen?

Apparently, Rodimus' last few thoughts were received by Cylinder, because the maroon mech found that the Aerialbot had an answer for him, though it was not exactly what he was expecting.

_It's none of your business about what happened, okay? Mind your own._

_Come on, Cylinder_, he pleaded,_ Why can't you just tell me what's wrong? What happened? I can help._

There was silence on Cylinder's end of the connection. The blue femme had slowed her pace to where, even injured, Rodimus was pulling away from her. Again, her bright blue markings seemed to dim, and her body slumped. Finally, she came to a full stop, the sand kicked up by her paws around her slowly floating back to the floor. She dug her paw into the ground and let it sit there, saying nothing more.

Rodimus limped over to her, pale blue eyes locking on to her electric blue ones. _You can tell me_, he promised, causing the femme to look up in confusion, _I promise. No other 'bot will ever know._

Tucking her wings in, Cylinder continued walking, but kept her pace slow so the young Prime could keep up. It was not the fact that she did not trust him; even with everything she held against him and accused him of, she still found it deep in her Spark to trust the young Prime. Still, the thought of sharing something that personal troubled her. Sure, she wanted to share it with someone, but the fear of it going further than between the two Autobots still lingered. Rodimus, or Hot Rod, always had the tendency to tell another 'bot about something if he felt it was a danger or threat to another. And with her actions lately, Cylinder had no doubts that Rodimus would not hesitate to tell the nearest medic or psychiatrist about her latest bout of "crazy," as some mechs liked to call it. Nevertheless, she found the courage and faith in him to tell the Autobot leader anyway.

_I had a dream last night_, she whispered over his processor, sighing at length so her massive processor could recall all of the information,_ It was about Prowl. He gave me a message saying that I am in trouble, but he doesn't know what kind of trouble I'm in, apparently._

_So why do you seem so . . . calm?_

_I don't know_, Cylinder admitted softly as the two slowly approached a large rock formation. _I guess I'm just . . . relived. Relived to see him again, relieved to see him as he once was._

_Aren't you worried about his message, though? _He asked, stopping in front of the large rock before them, waiting for the Aerialbot to continue.

_You'd think, but, no, I'm not. Unless I can truly understand what this means, I'm not exactly going to take this seriously. After all, it was just a dream._

Rodimus was silent. He looked away, then up at the massive rocks ahead of him. Between them, a large crack severed the two hardened slabs from each other, providing an easy pass for the two Autobots to move through with ease. The only obstacle was the darkness and frigid temperature of the deep waters. How anything could survive this far down was beyond the two Autobots' imaginations.

Cylinder, taking no precautionary steps, marched right into the crevice, leaving the shorter mech behind her. She turned, expecting him to be right behind her, but was disappointed to find him cowering at the entrance of the massive opening. She motioned for him to follow, but the Prime did not budge.

_Let's go. A small trench isn't going to kill you._

_It's not the trench that concerns me_, he replied shakily, half expecting her to return to his side. _It's what's _in _the trench._

Cylinder shook her head,_ You'll be fine. Look, I'm halfway in, and nothing's grabbed me yet._

_Yet_, he emphasized.

_Come on._

Rodimus complied and moved steadily through the gap; constantly glancing around to make sure nothing was watching him. A feeling of annoyance crept through his processor, begging for him to listen. When he finally acknowledged it, his eyes widened as he turned towards Cylinder.

_I had a dream last night, too. But I'm not sure I know what it means._

_And . . .?_

_It was about this place, the Dragon Realms. One moment, it seemed normal. Peaceful, serene, like Earth, even._

_I'm listening._

_But then, all of the sudden, the world erupted in flames. Everything burned to the ground, our friends, Autobots and dragons alike – killed. And from the ashes, a new dragon arose. He was pure black and cloaked in flames. Everywhere he walked, destruction followed. Then another dragon came behind him and started killing others like the dragon before him. They were killed, but then, from nowhere, a massive being rose from their ashes, and shattered the very rock he stood on. Everything was destroyed, and the monster laughed at his work. Then he moved to . . . somehow, he moved to Cybertron. And he, and he . . . he destroyed Cybertron, killing everything and everyone. Everything we once knew and loved, gone. And all of this was because of the fault of . . ._

Rodimus trailed off in his thoughts, causing Cylinder to loose her hold on him. He looked away, and stayed out of eye contact with her.

_What? _She demanded. _Whose fault was it?_

_Yours_, he tensed at the sound of the word leaving his thoughts,_ It was your fault, Cylinder._

Cylinder continued to walk speechlessly. What she wanted to say was held back by her own shock. Her fault? And she thought her dreams were odd. The Aerialbot continued to stare ahead, dumbfounded and silent all the same, averting her eyes from Rodimus' questioning gaze. But the awkwardness of it all lightened the moment both Autobots left the trench and caught sight of a small, glowing object buried halfway beneath the sand.

The Autobots exchanged wide-eyed glances before rushing over to the glowing piece. As Cylinder dug it out of the tightly packed sludge, Rodimus could begin to see its actual shape appear; a sphere, red and lively, had been buried in the lake. If that did not scream, "First key" in both of their minds, then nothing else would.

Finally freeing the sphere from its sandy prison, Cylinder spread her wings and pushed through the crushing weight of the water above her, Rodimus close behind. At the moment they broke the surface, the femme darted over to the shore where the berry bush sat. She pulled herself onto the sandy beach and set the orb down carefully, noting the intricate carvings on the golden bands that wrapped around it.

"Is that the key?" Rodimus asked, just to be sure.

"It has to be," Cylinder replied, moving her head closer to the sphere to get a better look. "It's a sphere, and it's glowing red – one of the three colors: red, green, and orange."

Rodimus inspected it, taking in its worn and scratched surface. Definite claw marks gouged the golden bands that secured the glassy bulb as if there was a massive struggle over the object. And with the way it was sticking out of the sand like that, it was not unlikely.

"So," Cylinder continued, "One down, two to go, right?"

"I guess," came the exhausted reply. "Are we going to leave it here, Cyl?" he asked worriedly.

Cylinder picked up the key and shoved it under the berry bush, making a reasonable-sized mound to hide it from any creatures that were passing by.

In little time, both Autobots had made it to the second lake. This one was wider than the first, and the water was rough and choppy rather than placid and calm. It took less time to get to the floor, though, mainly because it was shallower and life was abundant. Fish and other marine creatures swam through the kelp fields and large bottom-feeders hid among the rocks when the two dragons passed by. It was much brighter below the surface than the other lake, making Cylinder's glowing markings unnecessary as a light source for them.

Yet the water was salty, making it hard for Rodimus to keep his eyes open. Had he been in his robot form, seeing would hardly be an issue under the waves, salt or fresh water. There were no large rock formations in the lake, hindering massive animals from the necessary shelter they most likely wanted as the two strangers passed by. The only things that obstructed them were the strong currents that carried the underwater creatures to and from other places beneath the surface.

Cylinder pawed mercilessly through the water and sand, digging everywhere she could, as if she were trying to beat her record for finding the last key. Rodimus helped too, but his progress moved much slower as his side began to ache once more. With each passing minute, the femme grew more and more anxious about the situation. Her desire to find the key became adamant and a top priority.

Obviously this key had been buried very well, which frustrated the Aerialbot even more. Had she been in her robot mode, finding the spherical object would have been a breeze. High tech scanners and sensors came equipped with every robot for sure, but not every dragon. Cylinder had become so desperate that she began tunneling deep under the floor in search.

_What moron buries something underwater, anyway? I mean, it's not like something's just gonna dive in and go all the way to the floor_, Cylinder whined over her end of the connection. Rodimus regarded it absentmindedly before continuing his own search through a stone bed.

_Maybe there are aquatic creatures that belong to the Dark Forces? _He guessed, watching as the femme's tail just barely poked through the sand that had fallen on top of her during her search._ Just be careful, Cyl._ A grunt at the sound of the nickname followed, but the Autobot leader ignored it. _Acid said that the Sludge Dragons buried creatures from the Dark Forces under the sand in their battle, and since they're ground creatures, they may very well still be alive. _

_Not all of them were ground creatures, though, right?_

_I don't think so._

_Then that probably explains the dragon skeleton down here. _

Rodimus arched his brow and moved to where the Aerialbot was digging. Several feet below him, Cylinder had unearthed the skeletal remains of a dragon. By the structure of the bones, both Autobots could tell that the dragon had a husky build. He was tall like Acid, and his facial structure was wider as well. A small, orange glint of light, though, was the only thing important that caught Cylinder's eye.

Digging a little deeper, Cylinder pulled the dirt away to find an orange sphere glistening in what was left of the dragon's paw. It flared wildly as Cylinder's own paw reached it and picked it out of the dead dragon's tight hold. The glass bulb glistened gently, yet its light was brighter than the red key that was sitting comfortably on the beach. The orange sphere was also covered in gold bands, this time with different, more sophisticated carvings.

_This dragon must have died trying to protect the key_, Cylinder spoke reverently. _He was either brave, or a scoundrel trying to make off with it_.

Quietly, the two Autobots returned to the surface and placed the key under the bush. Cylinder noticed the sun had begun to droop low into the sky. The bright afternoon was slowly dissipating into a violet twilight. Clouds of every color but white casually rolled in, shielding the faint light of the first stars. A gentle breeze sent shivers down both Autobots, signifying the approaching coldness of the night.

"Let's try and find that last key before it gets too dark," Cylinder whispered as if something else was trying to overhear. Quickly she approached the third lake with Rodimus close behind.

Unlike the other two, this lake was closest to the nearby ocean, and therefore its waters were far rougher and more turbulent. Waves of tremendous height crashed against the sharp, weathered rocks that jutted from cliff sides. The bodies and bones of many dead animals sat washed-up on the shore, some recent, some as ancient as the lake itself.

Rodimus immediately cringed at the freezing water the moment his paw made contact with it. With the sun drifting behind the mountains, the high tides were beginning to roll in, pulling both dragons from what was once a damp patch of sand to a shallow pool.

"Let's get this over with," Cylinder muttered and reluctantly and disappeared below the waves. Completely submerged, the femme immediately dived for the bottom, finding that this lake was far deeper than the others. She shivered at the biting cold that pushed in on her cold-blooded, scaly body. By the time she and Rodimus reached the bottom, everything around them had turned completely pitch-black. Had it not been for Cylinder's markings, both Autobots would have had more than a hard time searching for the keys.

Guided only by her light, the two Autobots walked forward, scaling the jagged rocks and avoiding the strange fish and bottom feeders that got in their way. The sand was loose and shifted often, slowing their pace dramatically. Large rock formations, similar to the first lake, jutted up from the ground. Only these ones were far more ominous and scary. More skeletal remains of dragons lied perched on the sharp, jagged rocks. Evidence of fierce fighting scarred the surface of the formations. Large claw marks decorated the surface, and many bones laid undisturbed at the foot of them.

Between them carved an even deeper trench than the one in the first lake. Even Cylinder's markings seemed to grow as dark as her body as they climbed down to the bottom, nearly slipping on the smooth, rocky surface. Rodimus did everything he could to keep warm. If all reptiles, especially dragons, were coldblooded, there was no doubt that both he and Cylinder would eventually die of the temperature if they did not leave soon.

The worst-case scenario told him that they would have to wait until daybreak, when it was slightly warmer, to dive back in and try the search again. But even he knew that time was short, and the Autobots could not afford to wait, for the entire fate of the Realms may or may not have been resting in their hands.

When they reached the absolute deepest point, Cylinder began to dig. With the Aerialbot burrowing deeper than she needed to go, Rodimus lost his light source. Groping blindly in the dark, he tried to call out to the blue femme, but found that all transmissions this deep had been lost with the increasing pressure and weight of the water. He felt along a large boulder, using it as his source of support. The water was now beginning to affect his injury. It practically froze his movement. Incessant chattering growled in the back of his head: if they did not go back up soon, both would freeze and die in the black abyss.

As Rodimus started to move back to where Cylinder had been burrowing, something large obstructed his way – something that hadn't been there before. His paw moved along the surface, slimy, and _scaly_. As he touched it again, a thin, serpent-like body swam away from him. It was large, and not just Acid large, but more of Metroplex large. And Metroplex was one huge Autobot; he was so big, in fact, that the mech had earned his title as a _city_ transformer. As in, the size of an _actual city_.

When the moving entity had finally cleared, Rodimus found Cylinder emerging from the hole she had dug, shivering and frustrated. Doing his best to communicate with her through the density of the water, the Autobot leader could only stare in silence, eyes widened, when something big and blue came up behind the now dangerously tiny femme.

Illuminated by her features, Rodimus could just barely see the green and blue fins that spanned even larger than his head, the golden eyes that glimmered dangerously in the light, and the teeth – hundreds of white, sharp teeth. Some of them could have easily beat the Autobot leader in a size contest, robot form or not.

It only took Rodimus' gaping stare and the sensation of warmth against her back to make Cylinder turn around. Immediately, the blue femme's wings drooped, her markings dimmed, and her eyes stretched wider than the mech's behind her. Floating, just mere inches away from her face, a dragon-like creature stared dead into her eyes. His head was at least three times the size of the Aerialbot's body, and his sharpest teeth spanned easily to the length of her head. Pale blue scales reflected Cylinder's more than frightened image, and dark gold eyes simmered in rage as it followed every slight move both Autobots made. The large green and blue fins around his head flared as far as he dared to stretch them.

Through the constant disruption of the water, Cylinder managed to send one message over Rodimus' processor, which spoke louder than inspirational speeches in his mind: _Go._

Ignoring the pain, Rodimus spread his wings and pushed through the heavy lake. He raced as fast as he could to the surface, forgetting everything else and focusing only on saving his life. Nothing else mattered more than reaching the top.

The light of the newly rising moon shimmered off of the lake, illuminating the dark night. Many stars began to appear, and several comets could be seen dancing across the night sky. Any of it could have made Rodimus forget about the impending danger just stories beneath him.

"Cyl, what do we do?" he found himself asking, "We still need that – Cyl?" There was no sign of the blue Autobot anywhere. Not even her voice could be heard. _Cyl?_ The young mech thought, silently praying for an answer, but nothing replied. In the slight panic of wondering where the femme swam off to, the sudden realization struck Rodimus.

Immediately, the Prime dove back beneath the waves and pushed down as far as he could go, ignoring the cry of his side being terribly bruised and frozen from the day's events. As he kept pushing his body deeper and deeper, a sudden entity pushed him spiraling out of the way and to the surface, followed by a much smaller creature behind it. Though it was too dark to see any definite lines or colors, or even glowing markings, Rodimus did not have to think twice about who it was.

By the time he reached the surface, Rodimus was able to see both Cylinder and the creature locked in a vicious fight. By the appearance of the gigantic beast, Rodimus could easily tell that it was some type of sea serpent. It had no limbs, but a long, massive body with numerous webbed fins adorning its head, neck, and tail. The only connection that he could have made was what Acid had said: this was no doubt the "sea creature" the Acid Guardian had warned them about.

Its jaws spread wide and far apart as it arched its body up, pulling into a dive back into the water, Cylinder right in its aim and locked on to. She immediately responded with a blast of fire to its throat, which hardly did anything against the creature's size and the cold weather.

Cylinder dove back beneath the water and pushed her self as far down as she could go before the creature used its massive head to push her even further. Rodimus followed as quickly as he could before stopping. He began to feel as if he could not move anymore. Through his constant movement, he was not cold from the frigid water; but yet, he began to struggle beneath the surface. Then it struck him – he could not breathe. The berries' effects had worn off.

Which meant that Cylinder could not breathe, either.

Rodimus tore for the surface, taking the deepest breath he could upon escaping the dark waters. He rushed on the beach, digging beneath the berry bush for the only source of light he had: the two keys. It was probably a dumb idea, but he was desperate. Grabbing another bunch of berries, he split the group in half and ate part of it, ignoring the sour juices as they stung at his taste buds. He grabbed his pack and emptied it, placing the two keys and the other half of the berries inside. Running as fast as he could, he dropped into the water and dove deep.

He pulled the two glowing orbs from his pack to help him through the pitch-black waters. But before he could reach the ground, Rodimus found the two dragons locked in battle once more, Cylinder struggling to push out of the tightening grip of the serpent's tail and to the surface for air.

Being small, booth root mode and as a dragon, Cylinder was fast, but not very strong. Her durability was questionable, and like Acid; she could never take a hard hit without being seriously hurt or momentarily stunned. The only durable thing on her body was her Spark that seemed to survive hit after hit. But her small body struggled immensely for air as she tried to push back the large yet agile beast that outmaneuvered her at every turn.

Finally, after what seemed forever, along with the protest of Rodimus' aching side, he managed to slip through the sea dragon's swirling and twisting body and get to Cylinder. The femme never needed to be told twice when the maroon Autobot pulled out the berries and offered them to her. But as she stretched out her paw to receive them, the gigantic beast immediately pulled up and lurched for the surface, carrying the blue Aerialbot with him.

The moment the two broke the surface, Cylinder inhaled as deeply as she could, rocketing into the sky to get a better position on the towering serpent. Now, he was in her domain, her battleground. Even as a tiny, organic being, there was no question that Cylinder's natural fighting environment was in the air, where all flyers belonged. The fight would soon become even.

The serpent's fangs glistened vividly in the moonlight, each of them reflecting Cylinder's terrified image. As quickly as he saw the small femme, he drew back his green crests on his head and flared them once more. Along with it came a scalding, hot water blast aimed at Cylinder. She dodged it with ease, letting loose her own blast of bright blue flames.

Rodimus eventually surfaced and paddled over to the two, clenching his teeth as tight as he could in response to the pain that stung at his side. "Cylinder!" he called, but the blue Aerialbot was far too involved in the fight to be paying attention to anything else. The creature cocked once more, this time intent on finishing her off.

Even with her speed, Cylinder could not keep avoiding the sea serpent forever. Exhausted and worn-out, the beast prepared to make his kill. Rodimus lifted into the air and did the only thing his weak body could do: inhale. He thought of how Cylinder breathed beautiful blue flames, and at the same time, thought of how he could do the same thing, if for once, he could just focus enough for one moment and concentrate on saving the blue Aerialbot's life. When he exhaled, bright, red flames erupted from his mouth. Though small and weak, the flames did some damage against the large beast, which roared in pain. Rodimus floated there in shock, not because of the towering beast above him, or the fact that it stared confusingly at the two orbs in his hand, or even Cylinder's repeated cries telling him to get away, but the very fact that _actual fire_ came out of his mouth.

The tall dragon looked at his wound, then back at Rodimus, then the keys in the small dragon's paws. The glowing orbs seemed to mesmerize him. Lowering back into the water, the dragon narrowed his golden eyes and put his face level to Rodimus. His green fins drew back and relaxed. Cylinder remained poised and high in the air, her natural fighting space, in case of an attack on the Autobot leader, this time fully prepared and ready.

Suddenly, the dragon opened his mouth, but instead of shooting boiling water from it, he spoke, "How did you find those?" A deep voice, one fit for a mighty ruler, shook Rodimus to his core, but he remained strong and answered.

"We need these keys," he looked at Cylinder, who only nodded for him to keep going. "We need to get to the scorched earth and warn the Sludge Guardian of an impending attack. We fear the Dark Forces might be after–"

"Marchosias," the large sea serpent finished for him. His eyes narrowed in regret and pain as his head and crests drooped, "Forgive me, young ones, I had no idea." He watched as Cylinder returned to Rodimus' side, eyes narrowed in complete distrust.

"Serina put me in charge of guarding the last key in case someone attempted to take it. I immediately assumed you were the Dark Forces' scouts, and came to try and look for it, so that's why I attacked you two. I am ashamed that I did not realize you were searching for them for a better reason, and it caused me to think too rashly. I am terribly sorry," he directed those last few words to Cylinder, who again only nodded in response, still not completely trusting his words.

"My name is Leviathan, Guardian of the Water Dragons."

"There are more?" Cylinder exclaimed in shock, "Do they attack innocent dragons, too?" She stared straight into his eyes accusingly, silently wishing she could use her mind abilities against the organic being.

Leviathan nodded and spoke, "So you're looking for the last key, correct?"

"Yes," Rodimus replied for the seething Aerialbot next to him, "And we _really _need them."

Without another word, Leviathan understood the stress in the mech's voice and dove below the waves, his tail fins flipping hurriedly as he submerged. A few moments later, the large Water Dragon returned to the surface with a small, green orb clenched firmly between his massive jaws. As a sign of peace he gave it to Cylinder, who carefully pulled it out from between the massive teeth.

The orb glimmered in the moonlight. Green flecks floated around inside the glassy bulb, and several intricate carvings covered the golden bands that stretched around its surface. A soft green glow illuminated the edges of Cylinder's face that her markings could not.

Accepting his peace offering, Cylinder nodded, "Thank you. Your bravery is what keeps the Dark Forces away from the scorched earth."

"It is my honor," he replied. "Should your mission succeed, the Water Dragons owe you a debt of gratitude, young ones." As the moon rose higher into the sky, Leviathan spoke once more, "It's getting late. As the moon rises, the Galactic Guardian is at his most powerful, and is able to aid the trine guard when they sleep. But the moment the moon begins to fall across the sky, Marchosias regains his power, and the threat of his return becomes more and more likely as the day goes by. Even in this time of great peace, I like the other Guardians, fear the day when he returns," he whispered grimly.

Cylinder looked out across the lake at the wall that surrounded the outer ring of the burned areas beyond. The rocky ground was cracked and bore no foliage for cover, which would make it easy to spot any threat trying to approach the only way to access the land beyond. Between each crack in the ground she could vividly see the boiling magma that seeped between them. And beyond that, she could have sworn that she heard the faint sound of a dragon's roar in the distance.

She trembled at its sight. Being this close gave her a pained feeling in her chest, which could only translate into her nervousness and fear that Serina would not believe them. Or maybe it was the fact that, through the seemingly omniscient Voice inside of her, she had absolutely no doubts that Galvatron and the other Decepticons would be there, whether they were coming for Marchosias or were just attracted to the landscape's features and felt that they needed to set up their base of power there.

She turned to Rodimus and nodded, watching as he weakly clutched his side with a small smile still plastered on his face. With one final word, she turned to Leviathan and whispered, "Thanks," before departing. The large Water Guardian slipped below the waves as the moon reached the summit of the night sky above the world. For now, with what little time they had, The Galactic Guardian would keep Marchosias at bay, long enough for them to meet the Sludge Dragons, and protect the Dragon Realms from the Decepticons.


	9. Chapter 8 - Face Your Fears

Chapter 8 – Face Your Fears

Just looking at the outskirts of the scorched earth gave Cylinder and Rodimus chills, but that feeling could never compare to what both Autobots were feeling now. The moment their paws made contact with the hard, stone ground, a feeling of fear, a feeling of fright washed over them. It did not take Cylinder's advanced processor to explain the hideous and terrifyingly large amounts of Dark Energy coursing through the lands. Even protected, this land was still vulnerable to attacks.

Vulnerable and dangerous.

The scorched earth's only light permeated from the magma that flowed through and under the cracks of the stone landscape, giving the barren wasteland an overall orange glow. An ominous feeling lingered in the warm, dry air. Even Cylinder, brave as she could be, could hardly keep her head any higher than her shoulders. Her eyes darted around suspiciously, and her wings sat poised and ready in case she needed to spring into the air for a fight. And if Galvatron was truly on his way, the blue femme needed to be on her feet and ready for it. For a moment, she forgot her selfish ways and instead focused on the fact that a whole world could be in severe danger if she did not act.

Rodimus walked even slower than normal, not just because of his injuries, but also because of his fear of one of his paws slipping between the cracks of the surface and burning himself.

The sky was pure black and smoky, and embers occasionally rained down from the sky when one of the thousands of volcanoes erupted violently. The stone wall rose even higher into the air than Cylinder expected. Its massive height could have easily put any Combiner Team to shame. The wall was slick and smooth. Not even Cylinder's sharp Aerialbot optics could make out a single gouge on the surface, save for the claw marks scratched deep into the base of the wall, most likely from attempts by the Dark Forces to scale it.

Above the wall, heat waves permeated and rippled through the reddened sky. If the air was warm out here, Rodimus could only imagine what it felt like in there. And he loved the heat.

Both Autobots directed their attention towards the gate, which was probably the most beautiful thing to look at in the whole stretch of land, and the gate was not exactly gleaming and properly cleaned. Remains of statues that no doubt belonged to the forms of Magma Dragons lied scattered beneath burned stone basins. Three gilded seals protected the gate, one glowing green to signify the Acid Element, one orange for Sludge, the other red for Magma – the seal of the Trine Guard.

In front of that, a small, outpost sat, and before it, a light brown dragon stood guard. The dragon was no doubt male. He was burly and tall, similar in structure to the dragon skeleton Cylinder had found beneath the sands of the second lake. Several scars covered his face, and the dark brown wing membrane was torn in several places. Despite his height, though, Cylinder just barely reached the height of his chin.

Questioning purple eyes gazed down at the blue and maroon dragons, giving away the slight hint of youth the old guard still had left in him. "And what can I do for you two?" he asked, a bit of suspicion in his tone.

"We need to speak to Serina," Cylinder replied instantly, exhausted and praying for a positive response.

"I'm sorry," he replied, "But no dragon speaks to the Sludge Guardian without proper authorization. For all I know, you two could be spies for the Dark Forces."

"But we're not," Rodimus cried out desperately, "Honest! This is urgent for her and the Trine Guard! The whole fate of the Dragon Realms may depend on it!"

"Look," the dragon turned sharply and growled, "I don't care if you're the Galactic Guardian himself. No one without the authorization to get in here has gotten past Luto in years. I'm not about to start now."

"Well what if we have authorization?" Cylinder retaliated, standing as tall as she could, her old impulsiveness breaking through.

Luto narrowed his eyes and sneered, "What would that be?"

"Well, first of all," Rodimus spoke, biting back the pain that screamed at his side with his movements, "Both Acid, the Acid Guardian, and Leviathan, the Water Guardian, sent us to you, and second, we have the three keys to get in." His tone grew more serious as he took a step forward, "So don't you tell me that we don't have any right to be here, otherwise Serina will hear about this, and I'm pretty damn sure she wont be the slightest bit pleased, especially when dragons of the Dark Forces start attacking the gate and begin killing your own kind."

Cylinder actually cringed at Rodimus' sour tone. The Autobot leader rarely showed it, even when he was angry, but when he did, many 'bots found it wise to stay away from him. The blue femme once found several mechs camping in her underground lab while they waited out what they called "Hurricane Rodimus." Though with the mech, and his naturally emotional character, the Aerialbot could still see how he was struggling to fight against the pain that burned through him. She was actually surprised he even made it this far.

"Cylinder, show him the keys," Rodimus ordered straightforwardly.

Without hesitation, the blue femme opened the pack fastened to his bruised and bandaged body and pulled out the three glowing orbs as proof of their right to be where they were. Luto bent down to inspect them; taking the orange one in his hands and running a claw over the carvings that were etched into the golden bands.

Nodding slowly, Luto spoke in a whisper, "You've made your point. Follow me."

The building Luto had been guarding was actually larger on the inside than it appeared on the outside, complete with full, open rooms, and abound with dragons. Many of them were similar to height and build as Luto, even the females. Color-wise, the Sludge Dragons varied from pale oranges, to dark browns, with deep purples here and there. Most of them appeared to be purebred Sludge Dragons, but hardly any of them looked nearly as gruff and serious as Luto. Nearly every one of them had deep, purple eyes as well.

They all stared on in silence as the blue and maroon dragons passed through the crowded hallways of the stone building. If Acid had said that many Sludge Dragons had died over the years of fighting with the Dark Forces, Cylinder wondered exactly what it was like before then. How many Sludge Dragons were alive then? The possibilities seemed endless.

Near the end of one hallway, Luto stopped in front of a door, a large symbol no doubt signifying the insignia of the Sludge Element engraved deep into its stone surface. Closing his deep purple eyes, Luto concentrated intensely, reawakening powers he thought had been dormant for so long. The brown dragon breathed slowly, then released. A thick, brown, murky substance erupted from his mouth, as would the flames from Cylinder's. The Sludge filled the hollow seal on the wall, causing the door to react immediately. In an instant, several locks unlatched, and loud clanking noises of old machinery could be heard moving behind the closed door. All three dragons took a step back as the door swung open, revealing the contents of the room within.

Inside, the room was nearly empty. It was wide and long. The air was cooler in here than anywhere else, but a bright fire burned in the fireplace as the only light in the room. Before the three dragons sat a magnificent altar, decorated by three banners: a red one with the insignia that no doubt represented the Magma Element, an orange/brown symbolizing Sludge, and a bright green one for Acid. A stone plaque rested in front of the altar. The writing on it was engraved simply with the dragon language, which Cylinder could loosely translate into saying: _For the Magma Dragons who gave their lives to protect the scorched earth; their bravery honors us all. –The Trine Guard._

Before the stone sat a lone dragoness. Unlike the others, she was tall and thin, like Acid, but more in Sludge Dragon standards. She was slightly taller than Luto, and had somewhat of a build to her body, but still appeared fragile and weak.

Luto stopped Rodimus and Cylinder from moving any further and stepped forward respectfully, lowering his head in submission, "Serina, there are two dragons here to see you. They have an . . . urgent message regarding the safety of the Realms."

The dragoness' head titled up, and without turning, she spoke, her voice calm and full of youth, despite her slumping stature, "Thank you, Luto. You may leave."

Without another word, Luto nodded and left, whispering a "Good luck," at the two Autobots.

As the door behind them closed, Serina stood and turned towards the two smaller dragons, and regarded them curiously as she took in the vibrant colors of their scales. Surely, camouflage was not on their side.

As beautiful as she was, Serina looked strikingly different from the rest of the Sludge Dragons. The scales on her body were coated in a deep orange/brown, and her chest purple chest plates ran from her neck all the way down to her tail. The tip supported a sharp, purple fin in the shape of a crescent, and it moved gently with the sway of her tail. Two dark purple horns curved from her head and back like a ram's would. Sharp, wavy crests adorned her head, neck, and ran all the way down to her tail. Two large wings sat comfortably on her back, flexing in the little space she had. The membrane on them was colored a deep violet, and appeared to be somewhat transparent in the dim light. Falling just inches from the floor, a long, orange cloak relaxed comfortably on her back, attached to her with the signature gilded collar of the Guardians, a bright orange crystal hanging from it, and the Sludge logo on her shoulders. The cloak was somewhat torn and fringed in places, but other than that, the true symbol of her authority as the Sludge Guardian remained.

Perhaps the most interesting thing on her body was the appearance of her eyes and teeth. Her eyes, rather than being deep and purple like the others, were a bright, glowing orange. Two of her sharpest teeth curved out from under the top of the mouth that glowed vividly in the light.

Looking at Rodimus, then Cylinder, she spoke, "Good dragon, huh? Always doing his job so well. I'm thinking of nominating him for the next Guardian position when I'm gone."

Cylinder cocked a brow and turned towards the door, "Luto seems a little old for that."

"Trust me, he's not. He's probably just about your age, but so many years of fighting and battle has made him hard the way he is." Serina looked down at the two and studied them: Rodimus' somewhat muscular structure and injured side, Cylinder's thin, aerodynamic build. "So what can I do for you?"

Rodimus pulled the keys back out of his pack and explained to Serina about the Decepticons, and why Acid had sent them to her. "It was weird, though. Acid said not to use the keys, and that all they're needed for is to give us access to warn you."

"Well, that would make sense," Serina agreed. "Did Leviathan give you any trouble?" she regarded the old Water Dragon proudly.

"Well," Cylinder started, "Acid didn't know about Leviathan very well, so we were unprepared when he attacked us. He thought we were trying to steal the keys, but once we explained our intentions to him, he understood, and gave us the last key."

"Oh, yes, forgive me," Serina replied, a hint of shame in her voice, "Acid rarely visits nowadays. I never had the chance to tell him about it. Sorry," she muttered. The dragoness turned and approached the altar, bowing reverently at the miniature statue of what could only be Vesuvius. The dragon seemed short and stocky, but strong and proud.

The Sludge Guardian turned and sighed, "You see, after the Magma Dragons went extinct, times have been exceedingly stressful for my dragons. I hardly get out anymore, and everyone always has to be on his or her paws in case of a sudden attack. Thank you for letting us know in advance about these dragons."

_What an idiot_, the Voice chirped. _Wait 'till she finds out about what they really are._

_They wont_, Cylinder growled. _Shut up._

"Acid told us what happened to Vesuvius . . . I just don't understand how it could have killed him," Rodimus contemplated, "Was he injured, or . . . what?"

Serina lowered her head but kept her focus on the three flags before her. "I remember it well, the day the Trine Guard dissolved. It was night, we had just bedded down to rest while the Galactic Guardian watched over the scorched earth. Vesuvius, Acid, and I had met previously in the day to discuss the current status of the wall. But just as I had begun to fall asleep, I heard a loud roar coming from the City of the Acid Dragons. Acid had spotted the Dark Forces, and they were on their way to the wall.

"I ordered my dragons to surround the lake and prepare for the assault, but Acid joined me, and frantically tried to explain what was going on. The Dark Forces had no intention of taking the keys – they were going straight for the gate. Vesuvius and the other Magma Dragons soon found themselves hopelessly outnumbered, and they began dropping like flies every moment. In one last attempt to save the scorched earth, Vesuvius unleashed his true power's potential – his Fury.

"Do you two know what a Fury is?" Serina asked. Both dragons shook their heads. "You see a Fury is when a dragon reaches their most powerful self. All of their powers combine into one to form a 'super element.' But the problem with Furies, is that if you don't release one every now and then, unstable energy could build up, and the likelihood of becoming seriously injured increases with each passing day. Vesuvius never used his Fury.

"I guess you could compare the former Magma Guardian to a volcano – Vesuvius was always fiery, yet calm when he needed to be. He was gruff, and cross at times, but a big sweetheart once you get on his good side." Serina paused and lowered her head even more. The very thought of her old friend clamped down on her normally upbeat attitude towards things. "But the problem with Vesuvius, was that he never found a reason to unleash his Fury. Not even in severe combat situations could he build up enough anger to release even the slightest bit of power. He was far too calm, so the energy just built up inside him. And what happens when a volcano erupts after being dormant for so long?"

"A violent eruption," Rodimus concluded, thinking of the devastating power Magma had.

"Exactly," Serina replied. "The power was so energized that it not only killed the remainder of the Dark Forces, but it actually ended up stopping Vesuvius' heart. We tried to save him. We brought a Spirit Dragon to help, but he refused. He said he . . . he said he wanted to face the penalty for not using his Fury before, and that he wanted to be with his people. Then he just . . . died."

"The last Magma Dragon," Cylinder sighed. Normally, the femme never had much feeling for organic creatures throughout her life, despite living around them on Earth for a large portion of it. But that was probably because she never truly tried to talk to them. She knew that their lives were far shorter than the life of an Autobot, but she never understood the emotional side of it all. Now, after hearing Serina's heartbreaking story, all the Aerialbot could do was sit quietly and let her words soak in.

"You're all very brave," Rodimus said to the tall dragoness. "Without you guys, Marchosias would be a free dragon, and this world wouldn't last."

"Well, I fear that with your news we may not have a chance," Serina replied grimly. The Sludge Guardian left the room and approached the exit to the building. It was similar in size and structure to the gate that led inside the scorched earth. In the same way that Luto used Sludge to open the door to the room, Serina released her own bout of the element on the exit door, watching carefully as it unlocked and slowly swung open to the land beyond.

"Why do you say that?" Rodimus asked, doing his best to keep up with Serina's long stride.

"No offense, but by how you have described it, you two are outnumbered here, and you won't be able to hold them all off before reaching the gate." The brown dragoness stopped in front of the large gate. Heat radiated off of the think stone surface, and the golden seals of the Trine Guard shimmered high above them. "I believe it would be best for you two to give me the keys. Young one," she spoke softly to Rodimus, "Will your side be alright?"

Rodimus arched his brow, "Yeah," he replied questioningly, "Why?"

Serina sighed as she pulled the Three Keys from his pack, "I know Acid said to stay here and wait to fight the dragons, but I have a different plan. I hate to brag, but Acid isn't as smart as he thinks he is. I'm a little bit smarter than he thinks I am."

"What are you getting at?" Cylinder already knew the answer to that question, though. The Voice made her sure of it.

"You two are to go into the scorched earth. My Sludge Dragons and I will do everything we can to fight these dragons off, but if we fail, you are our last hope." Serina lowered a device that opened three spherical spots large enough to fit the keys in.

"Wait," Cylinder gasped before she inserted the first key, the green one. "This is suicide! Don't you think it'd be smarter for us to at least fight them first, and then if _we_ fail, you can fight them? We don't want them getting any where near Marchosias any more than you do! Let us fight them."

"Plus, we're . . . kind of afraid . . ." Rodimus was hardly sure he said that right, and knew it was more that he was afraid, not Cylinder.

"Young dragons," Serina began, authority in her tone, "As members of the Trine Guard, my Sludge Dragons and I have gone into this with every intention to protect the scorched earth. I do not want to risk your lives alone. We will fight until the end to protect this world, to protect the creatures of the Dragon Realms." She paused, and looked proudly upon the two Autobots, "It is time for the two of you to face your fears. You two are this world's last hope, and I have no doubts that you can save it."

With that, the Sludge Guardian pushed in the three spheres. The keys glowed wildly, and the sounds of locks being opened filled the dry air. In one massive movement, the gate swung open, connecting the bridge between the ends of the valley and the true entrance to the scorched earth. A single strip of a weathered stone bridge crossed the lake of molten lava before the dragons. The Dark Energy beyond seemed to beckon to the two Autobots as they made their first step onto the bridge, the intense heat biting at their scaly bodies.

The keys in the locks had shifted, and pulled upwards along a channel carved out specifically for them. They attached themselves to the archway of the gate, and sent powerful surges across and around the bridge, covering it in a thin, blue film. Both Autobots immediately felt the decrease in the temperature, the air now cool and thin.

"The keys were not only designed for unlocking the gate to the scorched earth, but also for providing a safe passage through to the other side of the lava river. The scalding heat was what kept the Dark Forces at bay if they ever tried to cross." Serina's tone grew serious again as she leaned in and spoke in a whisper, "Stay in the scorched earth, protect it from the Dark Forces. You two are our last hope."

Cylinder nodded, "Thank you, Serina. We will not let you down. Good luck."

With one last nod, Serina turned and shut the massive gate behind her, leaving the two Autobots alone inside the very threshold of hell. Now there was only one true way to go: forward.

Galvatron cursed the day he had killed Starscream. Alive or as a ghost made no difference to him whenever the red Seeker was constantly talking.

"I'm just saying," he bragged, "You all should trust me more. My ideas are gold."

"Your _ideas_ slowed our pace drastically and kept us from reaching that volcanic outpost," Cyclonus growled, separated from the ghost only by a cowering Sweep. "Why would any dragon run that far away to that place anyways? You saw how injured he was; he'd never make it! Have you got your head up your drive shaft, or something?"

Starscream ignored the insult and instead thought of a good statement that would convince the tall warrior sneering at him. The ghost needed to be on his toes at all times in order to keep the others, especially Galvatron, convinced. Though as far as he could tell, the Decepticon leader was not fully buying it.

Yet.

"Believe me, Cyclonus, you'll see. That land beyond that wall," he pointed to the barren volcanic wasteland, "Is full of Dark Energy, the energy we need to get back home." Now that was the truth. Starscream had quite a reputation for lying to others. Sometimes it was hard to discern whether or not the mech was lying or telling the truth.

Galvatron remained silent the entire time, listening more to the sounds of the world around him rather than Starscream's incessant monologues. Maybe it would be better if the Energon brought him back. Then, the Seeker would have to suffer what the other Decepticons were going through, the torture of a mortal life.

The forest, the green part of the forest, grew increasingly dark as the sun sunk behind the mountains, making it almost impossible to see farther than a few feet. Too many times had Soundwave counted the rocks he tripped over, or how many times large branches scraped and brushed against Scourge's wings. The canopy of low-hanging leaves had completely obstructed the view of the full moon that slowly rose into the air. Had it not been for Starscream, as much as the other Decepticons hated to admit it, none of them would be able to continue on until morning. His ghostly senses enabled him to not only walk through things, but see through them as well.

The crisp, night air called to the Decepticons, luring them into their nightly traps through songs and chirps. But Soundwave made sure they stayed on task. Having no imagination gave the dark blue mech time to focus on his work, rather than taking part in other activities a 'bot with a personality would normally do.

Finally, after what seemed like hours of walking (which was not exactly false), the thick tree cover began to gradually dissipate, and the night sky became clearer and sharper in their eyes, until the vast expanse of trees suddenly vanished from before them. The open field they now stood in let the chilling breezes send shivers down their backs. The tall grass swayed gently in the wind, hinting to the peacefulness of the night in the valley.

But no Decepticon would admit that they wanted to stay there. Plunging ahead, Galvatron finally spoke, "We must take the gate by daybreak. I am not waiting around while you all rest. Let's keep moving."

"Why are you listening to Starscream and heading for the gate, anyway?" Cyclonus asked, suspicion lining his face. The tall Decepticon knew that Galvatron would never trust Starscream, but that never meant that he was not curious about the power that lied beyond the gate to the volcanic earth. Maybe there was Dark Energy, like Starscream had said. Maybe there was power in there, power that could send them back home. Or at least, the home they had built on Chaar.

Galvatron actually paused at his SIC's question. The Decepticon leader considered it and let his processor delve deeply into the question. Why was he following Starscream's word? Was it his own desire for power getting the best of him? Maybe it was.

Or maybe it was something else.

Something called to him, spoke to him, compelled and lured him into a trap of obeying something that Galvatron knew was not there. Like a dark shadow coursing through his programming, he could never loose it; it was with him forever.

"Mind you, I do want to return to our own solar system, and I'd like to get as far away from this place as possible," he paused, searching for the right words, "I believe that that place would be safe enough to work on the Energon and figure out exactly how it got us here and how it can get us back. Instinct . . . has brought us this far. If we can get there without the Autobots around, and if we figure out how to use the Energon, we can very well leave them here as we go on with our original plan to conquer Cybertron."

"But, Galvatron," Scourge piped up, "There are only two Autobots – if we set our minds to it, we can easily take them!"

Soundwave, who had remained silent throughout the entire conversation stepped forward and replied in his emotionless mechanized voice, "Rodimus Prime in possession of the Matrix."

The truth hurt. Even without Cylinder's fighting skill, Rodimus Prime still controlled the power of the Matrix, a power even stronger than the Unmaker himself. If all else failed for the Autobots, Rodimus still possessed the power. With him out of the way, the odds of winning shifted drastically for the Decepticons, leaving the battlefield wide open for conquest.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, something urged Galvatron on. And for some even stranger reason, it told him that the Autobots would have the same intentions, as if both he and the Autobots were the puppets of the unseen entity's control. Now Galvatron's troops understood his desire to keep going, even if it was not entirely their leader stating what he wanted. But it was enough to inspire even Starscream, and that had to mean something.

Without any complaints, the Decepticon soldiers continued on their path towards the land just beyond their grasp. But it would not be for long.

They heard it. The sound of battle cries shot through the air of the scorched earth. Intruders approaching, intent on taking the gate, intent on bringing Marchosias back, as Serina had put it. Shrill cries and roars of violence erupted from the Sludge Dragons preparing for battle.

Cylinder looked at Rodimus, who in turn looked at her. No matter what, if the enemies beyond the gate were Dark Forces and Decepticons, it was time to fight; it was time to protect. Programming deep inside both Cybertronians reactivated after being dormant for a long time. This programming, the desire to be courageous, brave, and loyal towards others was what the Autobots stood for. Nothing could ever take that programming away from them.

"Be ready," Rodimus reminded the Aerialbot next to him. All she could do was nod in reply.

"Hold the front lines," Luto cried to the Sludge dragons around him, "No one gets through this gate!"

"We'll see about that," Galvatron shrieked, eyes going wide as he charged into battle, Cyclonus and Scourge at his sides.

Though Cyclonus had not yet discovered an Element to bear, his skill in battle had never left him. His thin and aerodynamically built body maneuvered effortlessly around each attack thrown at him by the brown dragons below.

Scourge and the Sweeps, with their impossibly large wings, had a harder time dodging the muddy globs that sailed in their direction, but the ability to use Ice helped them freeze the projectile objects and redirect them at the dragons below.

Galvatron and Soundwave immediately set to work searching for the leader of the battle. Both knew that the husky dragon at the front of the group was only a military leader, but nothing more. From their experience in fighting the War, both knew that the leader would most likely stay at the back of the battalion, waiting for the appropriate time to strike. And that was exactly what they found.

A female dragon, not much taller than Galvatron, stood watchfully behind her dragons, eyeing Galvatron as he made his descent on the rock she stood on. Her orange cloak swayed in the warm wind, revealing her thin body beneath. A hard hit would surely take her out of commission as it did to Acid. Yet as Galvatron touched down before her, followed by Soundwave and the ghostly form of Starscream, Serina's expression remained calm and unchanging.

"You must be the leader of this group, I presume?" she asked, though she already knew the answer.

"Very observant," Galvatron replied. Electricity crackled under his breath as he continued, "And you must be the leader of . . ."

"The Sludge Dragons," she finished, removing her already battered cloak and crouching into a defensive position, ready for the impending attack.

Galvatron retorted with his own fighting stance, growling electrifyingly, "Not for long." He lunged.

Immediately, Serina whipped her long tail around, tripping the bulky purple dragon. She struck with her dark purple blade, barely scathing his already healing acidic burns. Soundwave charged, dispatching Laserbeak and Ravage in the process. The dragoness responded with her tail and wings, slashing every which way she could at the strangely mechanical creatures.

While Serina battled Soundwave and the Cassetticons, Starscream rushed to Galvatron and helped him up, "Maybe we should use the Energon to change us into robots, so we can fight with an advantage."

Galvatron turned his head towards the battlefield where Scourge, Cyclonus, and the Sweeps took on the Sludge Dragons. They found little problem in killing the brown soldiers, which pleased the Decepticon leader greatly. He turned his attention to the Cassetticons, who were quickly overpowering the Sludge Guardian with every move she made. The Blue Energon rested under Soundwave's protective wing. Any dragon that tried to get it was instantaneously fought off. Not a claw was to be laid on the gem.

"We're fine," Galvatron replied, a confident grin spread across his face.

But the moment he said that, the odds turned against him.

The Sludge Guardian was overpowered and loosing ground, growing furious. Her once calm demeanor grew violent and vicious. She bared her sharp fangs and growled as Ravage advanced on her.

In one brilliant flash of light, the fighting stopped. Every Sludge Dragon took cover, save for the lone female whose rage sparked and built up inside her. Her pale orange eyes burned brightly as the power released, sending a massive shockwave that knocked the other Decepticons back. The moment they stalled out, the Sludge dragons charged, instantly gaining the upper hand in the fight.

As the charge in Serina's body vanished, she turned towards a stunned and pained Galvatron. "Where's your power now?" she roared.

Galvatron sat, eyes wide and jaw dropped. He had never seen power like _that _before. Now he was in trouble. He needed to act fast if he was ever going to take the gate.

Cylinder and Rodimus watched as the aftermath of Serina's Fury died down. It now rang true and obvious that the Sludge Dragons were definitely fighting the Decepticons. The Voice was right, then. They were here. But what Cylinder couldn't understand was why the fighting kept going after the Fury. With that much power unleashed, it could have easily killed any of the Decepticons, yet the shouts of battle still raged on through the night. Only one thing became clear to both of them: Serina had underestimated Galvatron, and Galvatron had underestimated Serina.

"Galvatron!" Starscream cried out, completely ignoring his resolution to ignore the Decepticon leader as best he could.

"What?" He demanded, joining the red Seeker in the air above the battlefield. His patience was wearing this with Serina. With every electric attack he summoned against her, she retaliated with either a swift dodge or muddy Sludge attack. She pushed towards the unscathed Energon crystal guarded by Soundwave, fighting against the Cassetticons for it, intent of destroying it. For in her eyes, it was their main source of their power. Soundwave had used his body to guard the Energon, taking the brute force of the furious power as it rushed by. It injured him greatly, yet he remained alert and ready in case the dragoness had pulled through and lunged for the crystal.

"You need my help, yes?" the former second shouted.

Though he hated to admit it, Galvatron needed all the help he could get at this point. "Of course, Starscream, why?"

"Then bring me back," came the flat response.

The words shook Galvatron as he heard them. Bring Starscream back? Was it really worth it? Did he have much of a _choice_? He knew that eventually, Starscream would get his way with somebot, or would slip away from the others and use it on himself. Maybe, now was a good time to just get it over with.

Reluctantly, Galvatron replied, "Okay . . . okay, Starscream. Okay."

A smirk turned into a large, expressive smile. "The only thing I ask in return is that you allow me to remain neutral until I decide if I want to rejoin the Decepticons or not."

On their return to Soundwave, Galvatron turned, eyes narrowed and teeth bared, "You're not coming back to the Decepticons?"

"I haven't decided yet," came the reply.

Soundwave, not impressed with the red Seeker's attempt at charm and honesty, turned and yanked a small chunk of the Energon, thrusting it into the ghostly dragon's paw. It shattered on contact, an amount just enough to restore his life, but not enough to return him to his robotic form. If it could even do that.

Instantly, the mist that rose from the crystalized dust enveloped Starscream in a blue haze. He felt the world around him grow solid, as did his body. Feeling returned to him, along with every sense a true mortal had. Although this time, he was not mortal. The Energon made him _immortal_, not susceptible to death. And that thought could not please him anymore than the thought of control over the Decepticons.

Of course, he probably could have died if Galvatron wanted him dead. But, like the Aerialbot femme Cylinder, his Spark became strengthened ten-fold, which would prove a challenge to any unlucky Autobot locked in combat with him.

"I live!" he exclaimed into the sky.

"Yeah, let's see how long," Scourge breezed by him, freezing over a patch of wounded dragons to make sure they stayed there.

Ignoring the insult, Starscream turned and rushed on Serina, catching her off-guard and pinning her to the wall the Decepticons were so intent on taking. Avoiding a blow from her tail, he clamped his jaws around the base of her neck, letting his sharp, solid teeth sink into the organic's flesh. The dragoness cried out in pain and struggled against the smaller red dragon's hold, but his weight kept her braced against the stone. The Sludge Guardian was not going anywhere.

Galvatron had actually found himself pleased with Starscream's quick work of the brown dragon. Perhaps restoring his life force was not such a bad idea after all. The purple Decepticon approached the belligerent and aggressive female as she pushed back against the Seeker that was clearly overpowering her, his jaws still clamped on her body. The Decepticon leader noticed that she was loosing energy quickly. He stood at her side, smelling the scent of the fresh blood that dripped from Starscream's jaw and her wound.

"Let us through, and I'll let your dragons live," he whispered.

If Starscream went any further, Serina's arteries would have torn, killing the dragoness for sure. She choked out a response as he tightened his grip a little more, "I would rather die."

Galvatron's lips curled up into a smirk as he glanced at Starscream, "Very well, then."

A sudden scream shot through the air as Starscream clamped his jaws as tight as he could force them to go. The Sludge Guardian struggled against him with all of her might. As Starscream bit harder, Serina fell silent. The dragoness' body slumped to the ground when Starscream released and took in his work.

The rest of the Sludge Dragons, even Luto, fell soon after. The battlefield grew quiet once more. Now the only sound that lingered in the air was the flow of lava beyond the gate, which Soundwave had forced to open.

The scalding air cooled once the keys locked into place and formed their protective barrier. But even with the shield, all of them knew what lied beyond. A treacherous wasteland spanned as far as they could see, littered with volcanoes and molten rocks. Even with the barrier on the bridge, the scalding, boiling heat called to them, tempted them to even dare to come closer.

"Decepticons, move now. I sense our victory is near," Galvatron smiled ferociously, Serina's blood spattered across his chest, neck, and face.

Maybe it was the heat getting to Cylinder, but she could have sworn she heard the sound of a scream fill the air, then everything falling silent. But Rodimus heard it, too, and grew worried.

"Is Serina . . . dead?" he asked nervously.

"I don't know," she muttered in response. The heat was definitely getting to the Aerialbot, but no matter the temperature of the air, she could never mistake the sudden blast of Purple Electricity that struck the ground just mere feet away from her. The blue femme traced the blast up in the air, and could hardly believe her eyes when she found its source.

Even after the Voice had reassured her that the Decepticons were here, she still had her doubts. There was no way, there was just no way. But yet, it was. Suddenly, Cylinder's eyes narrowed as the locked on to the equally disgusted face Galvatron gave her. Finally, she could use her mind abilities against a Decepticon.

Galvatron knew the moment he began to fall from the sky, Cylinder had taken control. Fighting against the urge to give in to her power, the Decepticon leader regained control of his body and pushed back up to his troops, shouting something undistinguishable to Starscream. Immediately, the red Seeker dove to the ground and rushed full speed towards the visibly weak Rodimus. The Autobot leader actually chuckled beneath his breath and stepped forward.

"This is going to be pathetic," he said weakly. "I'll take this."

But Rodimus realized what had happened to Starscream a little too late to react. The weight of a crushing boulder slammed into Rodimus as the two dragons tumbled across the heated stone ground. Even as a dragon, Starscream was still far heavier than the Autobot leader.

Rodimus could detect the energy signature inside of Starscream, giving away his restored life force. But the impact had permanently thrown the Autobot leader into the ground, and this time, he had no desire to move as the now living Seeker stood over him. A warm feeling literally flooded his abdomen as he tried to at least roll to his stomach with little luck.

"Move," Cylinder hissed, pushing Starscream out of the way. She stood over Rodimus, watching helplessly as drops of deep, scarlet blood dripped from his mouth. She helped him to his feet, but the mech could only groan and fall over in pain. The femme narrowed her eyes and stared at Starscream, who had retaken his place in the air along with the other Decepticons. Her expression could not have any other meaning than pure icy murder as she lunged for them, but stopped in midair.

Behind her Rodimus still lied incapacitated and weak, coughing on his own blood. But with his strength dying away, he lifted his head and whispered, "Go, Cylinder. I'll catch up."

The femme wanted to refuse; yet another Voice said otherwise. This time, though, the Voice linked it words between the others, as silent message passing through every Cybertronian. Even Rodimus heard it. _Go. Go to the rock. Powers unlike you have ever imagined lie there._

Cylinder watched Galvatron obeyed the Voice and greedily speed towards the rock, followed by his Decepticons. She turned to Rodimus lowering her head as he nodded her on. She faced the Decepticons that were now becoming just oddly colored splotches in the sky and flew after them, leaving her leader behind. This was it. There was no turning back now.

As the Decepticons landed at the foot of the massive formation, Soundwave took the Blue Energon off of his back and examined it. While guarding it during the battle with the Sludge Dragons, the Decepticon Communications Officer decided to look over it and test its abilities.

"Galvatron," the mechanized voice muttered.

"What?" the purple Decepticon demanded, already halfway up the rock.

"Function of crystal: found."

Nothing but silence passed through the other Decepticons for a moment. Soundwave figured it out. They could go back, they could conquer Cybertron. But Galvatron was torn. His own greed was getting the best of him, and he wanted nothing more than to find out what this "power" was. But an idea did pass through his racing mind.

"Use it, but only enough to return us to our robot mode. There is one other thing I want to do before we leave." Galvatron was done with this world. He could have cared less about conquering it. But the idea of this new power still remained with him. He wanted it, and nothing was going to even try to stop him from getting it.

Nothing except Cylinder.

As Soundwave pulled a reasonable sized piece from the crystal, the Aerialbot femme tackled the dark blue Decepticon from behind, letting loose a blast of Blue Flames. The Energon was shaken loose from his grip and shattered on the ground. Rolling in the dust, the two dark blue dragons shoved the other away and watched as the mist from the crystal began to rise and engulf them.

Soon, the feeling of metal began to pick up on very missed sensors. Cylinder's organic dragon wings were traded for her slick, metallic, Hornet wings, and her yellow horns melded themselves back into her golden chevrons. The sound of machinery filled her audios once more and electric blue optics flickered on for the first time in what seemed like ages.

She stood, this time on two feet rather than four, watching as the other Decepticons and Starscream returned to their bipedal Cybertronian modes. But even with the sudden change, that hardly stopped the battle between them. Even outnumbered, Cylinder lunged, landing a punch into Starscream's chest.

"That was for Rodimus," she growled, turning to face the next opponent. But that would never happen. As she lunged for Galvatron, a sudden electric pulse rippled across her circuits, causing the femme to spasm and fall. Her optics flickered. The last thing she could remember was the warning that popped up in front of her vision. It read: _Warning. Electrical pulse. Stasis will be induced. Danger: imminent. _


	10. Chapter 9 - This Ends Now

Chapter 9 – This Ends Now

The dry wind brushed across Silver's scales as she stared into the black sky of the scorched earth. The dark energy called her, tempting the young dragoness to follow its ways. But it could do nothing to shake her from the trance she had locked herself in. On her icy blue eyes, the image of the environment around her reflected off of the glassy surface. What was inside them gave away much more.

Fear. Torment. Pain. Agony. Every word with the slight notion of torture or death was the only thing that could run through the gray dragoness' mind. The land she once thought was amazing, beautiful even, had turned away from her, deceived her. The land had served as a prison for her, draining her power and slowly killing the young dragoness as the days passed. And she had the scars to prove it.

Silver lowered her wings and tail, listening as they slumped to the dusty ground, but kept her head high and alert. She watched as the two mysterious dragons crossed the rocky ground, noticing how they grew visibly weak and frightened. The scorched earth could do that to even the strongest and bravest of dragons. How the Sludge Guardian and her kin could have lived down there for so long, exposed to the dark energy that resonated through it was far beyond her knowledge.

The future Guardian had been following the blue and red dragons since the early morning, keeping out of sight and listening as best she could to them the whole time. But despite being around the two all day, she could never imagine their next actions.

"No," she whispered, "Not the scorched earth. Please, anywhere but there." But Silver's begging could not change their minds. Before she knew it, the two dragons, just her height and size, had disappeared into the building that rested before the gate. She could hardly believe it.

When she was there, she had lost her strength, her will to even want to live. Could it be any different for them? Surely the red dragon would have a hard time.

Silver thought about him: short with a slight build to him. Innocent eyes, yet headstrong attitude. But it was his side that troubled the gray dragoness. After being thrown against a tree, she thought that he would never get up. Yet here he was, miles and miles away from the original site, still walking and speaking. He was one tough dragon for sure.

Silver then thought about the female: tall, thin, and definitely built for speed. After watching the fight between her and the Water Guardian, Silver could conclude that the blue dragoness preferred fighting in the air. But what worried her was the female's build. While she was tall and agile, yet she was thin and appeared physically weak, lacking in strength. She seemed powerful and capable of great defensive strategies in a fight, but how long would that last?

Though she would never find out. Not that she could not, but rather, _would_ not. Silver had suffered enough in there. Most of her life was spent in there while the Dark Forces tortured her. It was not until the Trine Guard established a wall around the perimeter of the lands that any dragon even realized she was there. Now, years after the event, the dragoness could hardly bring herself to even look at it.

"Is this what you want?" Coldfang's dark and authoritative voice whispered to her; "You want to follow them into that horrible place?" The gray dragoness did not reply. "This is exactly what I predicted: they're no doubt dragons of the Dark Forces."

"You don't know that!" Silver snapped, lowering her head in shame.

"I don't? Silver, look where they're going!"

"That dragon seemed to trust them enough to bring them in! You have see the other side of the story!" Now Silver was shouting, enraged not only because of her father's tone, but because the two dragons were entering the scorched earth and there was nothing she could do.

Nothing she _wanted _to do.

She turned, her back to the land. It was unlike her to run from a fight, it really was. But when the torturous memories were the only thing flooding her thoughts, was there really a point in moving back to where it all began? Spreading her impossibly large wings, Silver paused and let a quick message pas through her to her patiently waiting father, "I will find them again. It's not over."

Cylinder was jerked online by yet another pulsating blast. But immediately after her sensors kicked on, the blue femme hardly felt right. Her optics flickered, catching the image of Soundwave before her. It was his electric pulses that took her offline, and now, here they were forcibly rebooting her systems.

As soon as she regained control of everything, the Aerialbot lunged, but was held back by a series of tightly woven chains. She grunted as she tried to pull free, but her strength could not beat the restraints holding her back.

"Galvatron!" she growled, fighting against the chains. She used her knee to shove Soundwave out of the way. Upon seeing Galvatron and the other Decepticons, she narrowed her optics and pulled against the chains even harder.

The only reply was a small smirk on the Decepticon leader's faceplates. Galvatron approached the squirming Aerialbot, accompanied by Starscream and Soundwave. He looked over the femme, face just inches away from her own.

"It's interesting, Cylinder," he whispered, "How much one can learn in just a few cycles of doing nothing but taking in information."

"What are you talking about?" she glared at Soundwave, who brought forth an small, portable data pad with lists of information, all pertaining to her. Cylinder's programming, thoughts, actions, and everything she had ever known were placed on the small pad.

"While you were offline, Soundwave decided to have a look inside your programming to find out if you knew anything that we didn't. And sure enough, you did. It's funny how those things work. Cybertronians are such a miracle. Nothing is more amazing that this, especially when you think about all of those useless organics you Autobots keep trying to defend." Galvatron took the pad in his hand and examined several CNA (Cyber/Nano Algorithms) charts that made up Cylinder's programming, and then focused mainly on several data files where her memories had been stored.

The very thought of the Soundwave poking around inside her made Cylinder tense. Like, Rodimus, she had always been very picky about who prodded through her systems. But to have a Decepticon do it was what really killed her. Who knew where any of them, especially the Decepticon communications officer, had been?

"So," Galvatron continued, "This . . . Marchosias. He's a very powerful dragon, no? Says here that he commanded the 'Dark Forces' and was the most powerful dragon in the 'Dragon Realms' at the time. It would be nice to," his optics glowed a bright blood red as he spoke this, "_Resurrect _him."

Cylinder paused from her struggling and looked up as the purple Decepticon walked away. Somewhere behind her, Soundwave closed up paneling on her head. The femme shook her head in a failed attempt to shoo the blue mech away from her. "He's not dead," she hissed, "And you have no idea where he is to even try, so don't–"

Galvatron's laughed interrupted her. It emanated throughout the room, carrying itself high above them and echoing off the rough, rocky walls. The rocky chamber was large, tall and wide in all directions. The air was damp and drafty, yet the room was warm. The ceiling towered over the Cybertronians in the room. Several layers of tunnels stacked on top of each other lined the rough walls, and from inside one of them, a soft, orange light glowed from within. It only took a few moments after that for Cylinder to realize where she was.

"Whatever," she growled, "That still doesn't mean you have what you need to free him. That thing's safe with someone else."

Galvatron laughed once more and pulled from his subspace an intricate item that Cylinder could barely make out in the dim lighting of the cave. Sharp, definite features glinted in the faint light as the Decepticon leader turned the object around slowly. Occasionally, bright flashes of green, orange, or red would emanate from the tiny entity. It only took a few seconds longer for Cylinder to understand what it was that he was holding.

"How did you get that?" she cried, pulling against her restraints once more. Soundwave tightened them.

"What do you mean 'How did you get that'? It came from you." Galvatron replied flatly.

"How could it have possibly–" Cylinder paused. There was no way she could have gotten the Dragon Stone. Even with her questionable memory, she _knew_ that there was no way she had it. It was safe with Acid, and she was sure of–

Acid.

How could Cylinder have been so stupid? When Acid gave the two Autobots their bags, he was not holding the Dragon Stone, and neither of them realized it. Acid had put it into Cylinder's bag, and when she returned to her Cybertronian form, the items in the bag, including the Dragon Stone, had been transferred to her subspace – a pocket designed for Transformers that kept any and all objects with them in an infinite storage container.

The blue femme leaned her head back against the wall and groaned. "Acid . . . why?" she whispered to the green dragon that was not there.

"I don't know why he did that, especially now that we know what we can use it for," Galvatron continued. "It's not very smart to make a stone that can cut through anything when you have a dragon sealed away in the depths of a planet's core."

In response to his statement, Cylinder leaned forward and caught his gaze with her own, freezing his processors and joining them with hers. They were going to attempt to free Marchosias. They had figured it out.

Though weak and worn out, the Aerialbot managed to keep every Decepticon in the room at bay while she delved deep into Galvatron's neural system. At her command, the purple Decepticon's grip relaxed on the powerful Stone.

A loud crack echoed through the hall when the Dragon Stone hit the floor. Cylinder had to remind herself that it was not broken, only cracked as she focused on it again. The power contained inside the old rock surged and sparked, trying its best to adapt to the new blemish on its already rough and blackened surface.

Galvatron, upon being released from Cylinder's control, turned and growled at the exhausted Autobot. She lowered her head in defeat, knowing full-well that she was in for it now. A cry of war rippled through the chamber as the Decepticon lunged for her, fusion cannon powering up with a bloodthirsty will to strike her down. Cylinder accepted her death and prepared for it. She leaned forward in hopes of her spark chamber being taken quickly rather than going through a slow, painful death, like the Decepticons usually liked to perform. But before she felt the impact of the large purple Decepticon, something smaller, red, and full of vengeance slammed into him.

Cylinder could see how Rodimus' injuries appeared when in robot mode. The metal was dented and scratched in places. Some places had no metal at all. Several cables and wires were leaking slowly, and a bright pink trail of Energon accompanied those bare places. She could still visibly see the pain on his face, but at least he was able to move. After all, it just might have saved her life.

As soon as Rodimus was able to knock the Decepticons back, the red mech advanced on Cylinder. He gave a slight tug on the chains that bound her to the rocky surface of the wall, the metallic bands snapping easily with strength that nearly tripled Cylinder's own.

"Are you all right?" he stammered between the warning sensors that went off in his processor.

"I'm fine," Cylinder replied, "Thanks. How's your side?"

Rodimus carefully brushed his hand over the gaping hole in his side, and removed it to find his hand dotted with drops of Energon. The leaking would do nothing to slow him down as long as he made this quick, but he had to promise himself that he would keep constant attention on his energy levels. "I'm fine."

With the reassurance, Cylinder turned to watch Galvatron and the other Cybertronians in the room right themselves. They stood, shakily at first, then regained control of themselves and stared back at the two Autobots, optics blood red with vengeance.

Everybot in the chamber knew what was coming next. The Decepticons were thrilled for the new challenge. The Autobots held feelings quite opposite of their adversaries. Cylinder's optics darted over to where Galvatron had been standing earlier, both the Dragon Stone and the remainder of the Blue Energon sitting there, waiting to be used. She knew immediately that whoever controlled both would be the clear victor of the battle. Unfortunately, so did Galvatron.

_I've got the morons; you've got the glowing rocks, yeah?_ Rodimus thought, arching an optic ridge in amusement. The femme next to him nodded, at burst forward, letting her speed do the rest.

Galvatron could hardly keep up with Cylinder as she grabbed the Dragon Stone first. She shoved it back into her subspace pocket and turned, landing her fist directly into the Decepticon leader's face. Though there was little strength behind it, it gave the Aerialbot enough time to avoid a cannon blast at land next to Rodimus, the red mech already locked in battle with the other Decepticons and losing ground quickly.

It was clear to all of them that the Autobots were terribly outnumbered, with absolutely no hope of reinforcements to come to their rescue. But Cylinder knew that if she could get ahold of the Blue Energon and figure out how to reopen the portal that sent them there in the first place, she would feel a lot better about the outcome.

But first she needed a plan.

Neither Cylinder nor Rodimus were very good tacticians. Had Ultra Magnus been here, or even the late Prowl, the Autobots would have won the battle with little problem. But having limited knowledge on the battle strategies Galvatron liked to randomly call out kept both Autobots stuck in the dire situation.

Rodimus kept the Soundwave and the Sweeps away while Galvatron watched from above, noting the physical weaknesses Rodimus possessed as his strength began to dwindle by each passing second. Ahead of him, Cylinder raced back towards the Blue Energon, Starscream and Cyclonus on her heels. Given the limited moving space in the cave, a sudden burst of speed would have thrown the tall femme off course and into the wall. She knew that she had to keep her speed at a minimum enough so she could move quickly, but not so quickly as to run herself into the solid rocky walls.

Skidding to a stop, Cylinder fumbled to place her hands on the crystal, tearing a small chunk from it. Was this enough?

But as she crushed the stone into bits, a short, blue Decepticon slammed into her. Cylinder fell back, dazed and loosing focus. This was the one thing she always hoped would never happen. If the blue Autobot was hit hard enough, a wave of electricity would slam through her, temporarily stunning her systems and freezing her neural circuits. She stalled out, allowing the enemy a split second of the upper hand in the fight before she could regain control.

Trying to right her stunned processor, another fist smashed into her side, cracking the already fragile abdominal armor she had there. Starscream followed up on Scourge's attack with another push. All Cylinder could hear was the cackle of triumphant laughter from the other Decepticons as they watched her fall into one of the hallways of the cavern. All she could feel was the familiar sensation of her body changing, morphing; her metallic armor returned to that rough, scaly skin her dragon form sported. Then she felt the intense heat burn into her when she finally rolled to a stop.

This heat, unlike the heat in the open plains of the scorched earth, was at least several times hotter. If not, more. Cylinder could have sworn her skin began to boil as she stood on all fours. Her vision soon righted itself, and the femme looked up, squinting through the blazing heat waves that resonated from the ground. When her Aerialbot eyes corrected the temporary vision failure, her Spark skipped a pulse as she stared into what was truly hell unto itself.

Before her, a large, golden crystalline substance stood before her. It stretched from the floor to the high ceilings, and spanned the entire width of the room. Beyond the glassy surface, the ground bore nothing but flames that easily reached over seventeen feet tall, Cylinder's height in her robot mode. But being a dragon, the femme estimated that she was a mere six to seven feet. She felt undoubtedly small.

But it was what was directly in front of her that compelled the blue Aerialbot to look on in pure horror. A dragon, just about Acid's height, towered over her. He had long, curved horns that jutted from his head, and large, torn wings that rested carefully on his back. Cracked and worn chest plates protected his pitch-black, scaly body, and sharp, white claws curved out from his paws in a way that gave off the most menacing vibes Cylinder could have ever gotten.

But what scared her the most were his eyes. His eyes. Primus, forbid those eyes. A deep, endless, bloody sea of red was all that she could see in them. They glowed sharply and painfully as they stared back at the femme, cutting straight through her like a blade. Through them, Cylinder did not need to establish a connection to see the tragic history of this dragon unfold before her. The pain, the suffering, the deaths. He caused them.

Every single one of them.

Separated only by a thin layer of glassy crystal, Cylinder could only sit and wonder why he was here, or why he did not just try to break through. But it was the moment she laid a paw on the glowing wall did she realize why. A sudden burst of dark energy shot through her as she tore her paw away from the surface. It hit her like a bolt of lightning.

There was a reason why this dragon was here. And there was a reason why he could not get out as well. The dragon moved slightly and smiled in amusement at the young dragoness who stepped back in pure horror. Being here for thousands of years, with little to no visits from anything, sure was boring. It was nice to cause some terror in the hearts of others.

Backing herself against the other wall, Cylinder kept her wings protectively around the bags that had reappeared on her back, the only substance that could free the dragon separated by her body. She narrowed her eyes and spoke a single, fearful word, "Marchosias."

The only response was a small, prideful smile. So she did know his name.

"Alright, I'm getting tired of waiting," Cyclonus' voice echoed hundreds of feet above the two dragons in the heated cavern.

Cyclonus, along with Scourge and Starscream tumbled down the slick surface of the pathway, falling directly into the crushed Energon pieces. Cylinder watched as the mist engulfed them, changed them, but Marchosias did not. Rather, he could not see them change. The black dragon tried his best to look around the corner that shielded his view, but received no satisfying results. Instead he waited. He watched.

Observed.

Upon returning to their dragon forms, the Decepticons approached Cylinder, fire burning in their eyes. Cylinder backed herself against the wall, protecting the packs.

"Watch it," she barked, "I wouldn't want to free him if I were you."

Starscream turned and widened his eyes upon the sight of the massive and somewhat confused face of Marchosias. He appeared impatient, as if he actually _wanted _to watch the conflict unfold between the blue dragoness and the three larger, and definitely stronger dragons. He was itching to see it happen. A good fight always calmed his restless, demonic soul.

So if it was a fight he wanted, it was a fight he was going to get.

Cylinder charged forward and concentrated hard on her somewhat new blue fire ability. As she moved, time around her slowed, yet her speed increased. Her body trembled at the heat, but burst to life when the femme had successfully surrounded herself in a rushing inferno of blue flames.

Despite her disadvantage in physical strength, Cylinder had plenty of speed to overpower the Decepticons. She caught the three larger mechs off guard, slamming her burning body directly into Scourge's chest. The tracker fell backwards as he tried to regain his senses. The flames fizzled out, and Cylinder regained her awareness of what she had done. Odd, that had never happened before.

Marchosias actually appeared pleased at the Aerialbot's speed, but deep down, he, being experienced himself in fighting, knew she could not last forever. Before the femme knew it, Starscream and Cyclonus had gained the upper hand on her. Even without elements, both dragons were able to hit her with hard, powerful strikes, which sent her flying into the wall.

Cylinder regained focus before Starscream could pounce on her again and charged away from them; skidding to a stop at the Energon shards that were now drained completely dry of any power they once retained. She looked at Marchosias, who in turn gave her a slight smile of impression. To say it felt disgusting was far more than an understatement.

"Get up, you idiot!" Starscream demanded of Scourge, who refused to budge after the hit from Cylinder had clearly taken the wind right from him. The Seeker watched as Cylinder took to the sky and rocketed out of the passageway back towards the main chamber. He chased after her with Cyclonus and a very reluctant Scourge at his heels. They all left Marchosias, but the very emperor of the Dark Forces was far from done with them. Where these four had come from, there were definitely more.

The moment Cylinder had freed herself from the tremendous heat that boiled inside the cavern; she rushed to Rodimus' side. It was evident that the Autobot leader was growing weak, even though his Cybertronian systems were trying their best to perform self-repairs on him.

Cylinder watched as Galvatron observed the fight. Next to him, Cyclonus whispered in his audio – no doubt the news of their, or Cylinder's, findings. The purple mech smiled and laughed, optics glowing a brilliant red. He slowly climbed down from his perch and eyed the two Autobots, taking in the fear in Rodimus' optics and the rage in Cylinder's.

The Decepticons accompanying their leader formed a tight barrier around the two Autobots, bringing back a severe case of déjà vu for all of them. Galvatron approached the worn crystal and ran his fingers along the rough surface. The gem surged at his touch, as if begging to be used yet again. Tearing a chunk from it, he turned back to the other Cybertronians and waved it nonchalantly between his digits.

"Well . . . it seems that, yet again, we've caught you in the worst position possible, Autobots." He turned to Cylinder, who was still caught in dragon form. "Hand over the rock, and I won't use this on you," he threatened her with the Energon. But both she and Rodimus knew that the crystal was not aimed as a threat towards her, but more towards the young Prime. If the Energon was used on him, upon being brought back into his own dragon form, the strain on his side would eventually kill him, leaving Cylinder alone to fight off the other Decepticons.

Loosing Rodimus was not an option for Cylinder. Neither was risking the safety of the Dragon Realms by bringing about the very center of the world's hatred, pain, suffering, and darkness.

"Indecisive, are we?" Galvatron smirked before making an almost invisible gesture to Soundwave.

Without any emotion or large movements, the sociopathic Decepticon quickly raised his weapon and fired. The blast hit Rodimus' already exposed side, knocking the Autobot leader back against the wall, body smoking and Energon beginning to puddle around him. His optics flickered as he coughed, the pink liquid substance dripping from the corner of his mouth.

"No!" Cylinder tried to push through the Decepticon barricade, but kept her distance when a Sweep nearly crushed the small organic form.

"I'm only going to say this one more time," Galvatron stated, crushing the Energon between his palms and allowing his body to return to his own dragon form. The other Decepticons followed his lead. "Give me the Stone, and I won't kill you or Rodimus."

Something in the back of her mind kept telling Cylinder not to give in; it begged her to keep in mind what the consequences would be if she traded the Dragon Stone for Rodimus. It was not the Voice, though. It was something completely different, like the angel to her devil, or the lamb to her lion.

The silent message passed from Cylinder to Rodimus. The young Prime nodded at the arguments that circled through her processor. On one hand, if she refused to give them the stone, Rodimus would be killed, and Cylinder could at least get the chance to fight for possession of the stone. But on the other hand, if she gave the Dragon Stone to Galvatron, it would ultimately set Marchosias free, but would also save Rodimus' life. And the Energon could take them back to Cybertron. They could forget this ever happened. But in both Autobots' minds, risking the life of one meant more to them than risking the life of millions of innocent creatures. Maybe letting Rodimus die was the best option they had. The Autobot leader seemed to agree.

But there was still something else that tugged at Cylinder's thoughts. That second voice called to her. It spoke to the femme, and forced her to listen, whether she wanted to or not. _Destroy the Energon,_ it said. _Destroy the Stone. End this, Cylinder, and finish this fight._

_No,_ the Voice overpowered the other, trembling with rage. _Give in. Give in, and let this world rot. It was doomed from the start. Save Rodimus, and fight later._

As compelling as that sounded, Cylinder still could not completely get rid of the other thoughts. Destroy the Energon_ and_ the Stone? That would also mean destroying any hope of returning home.

The blue femme looked over at Rodimus. The mech struggled to stay online. She looked at Galvatron circling her like his fallen prey. Either way, this world would crumble, and they all knew it. But at least she had to try. If it meant saving this world, then so be it. The Voice protested, but became overpowered by the other voice, the voice that found its way into the Aerialbot, and guided her like the conscience she should have had all this time.

_No,_ it whispered through Cylinder. _No, this will not happen. This ends here, and this ends now._

Cylinder burst through the Decepticons, drawing her power from the words of the other voice, a voice that, as she listened to it more, began to feel more and more familiar. There was something to that voice that made the femme think. But for now, she had to ignore the thought and focus on the task at hand.

When Cylinder reached the crystal, she felt as though she knew exactly what she needed to do. In her own rage, pain, and fear, the emotions that had welled up inside her had finally let out. She was done, finished with going through the same motions every day of her life. It was time to do something that she could always be remembered for, even if every witness would be dead before they could spread the news.

Cylinder's fury was hardly the work of a trained elemental dragon, but given the circumstances, it would have to do. The room illuminated with a soft, electric blue glow as bright, blue fire engulfed Cylinder. Her eyes glowed brightly, even more so than usual. Her wings spread far apart, welcoming the flames as they spread across her membrane and licked up the thin golden limbs. The ground erupted in blue flames, bringing forth the true emotion behind Cylinder's power.

For a moment, time froze, and Cylinder gathered herself as she looked around her. Rodimus had done his best to take cover by hiding behind a large boulder near the wall of the chamber. He knew he was going to die, but at the very least he had to protect the Matrix from the blast so Cylinder could bring it back to Cybertron. _If _she could bring it back to Cybertron.

Galvatron took a cautious step back, along with everyone else. Maybe now he was thinking twice about reverting back to his dragon form with the rest of the Decepticons. Or maybe he was impressed. Cylinder would never know.

After another moment went by, the young Aerialbot could no longer take the strain of the power building up inside her. The Voice spoke with a roar of fury in her defiance the moment her power released. Fire rippled across the ground, burning and biting at the Decepticons that stood in its way. The force of the blast caused the Blue Energon to Shatter, reducing it to nothing but a pile of broken rocks. Rocks that were now giving off a steady trail of blue mist.

In the aftermath of her fury, Cylinder panted hard, letting her body tremble and collapse. Power was not meant to be used that way. Even as a robot, Cylinder knew the price to be paid when exposed to that much force and energy. Yet still, even as it died off, she could not help but feel content. She did not die, she saved a planet from death, and she destroyed the Energon. Or did she?

In the wreck of the crystal, surrounded by the mist, a single shard remained. It was not very large, nor was it all that small. No smoke rose from the gem, indicating that it still was unused. Cylinder's hope of returning home had reappeared, but before she could reach for it, a soft moan echoed around the rock walls. The blue femme immediately recognized it.

Cylinder dashed to the rock Rodimus had been hiding behind, noting the massive burn marks on its surface. She lowered her head in relief at the sight of her leader still functioning. He lifted his head and gave her a slight smile; the silent message of _I'm alright_ passing through them.

Slowly, Rodimus found his footing, using the edge of the boulder for support to lift him up. His side whined in protest, but he did his best to ignore it. The Prime approached the Energon with Cylinder close behind.

Both Autobots watched as the catastrophic event of their first encounter with the portal played back again. The mist swirled around before them, igniting its bright blue light. The wind that had pulled them in before picked up, tugging at them, beckoning to come through to the other side, wherever that may be.

Rodimus, eager to get his wounds fixed and to return to his home planet, did not hesitate as he took one step in, followed by another. But as Cylinder followed, she turned back. The mist had surrounded her, changed her back into the robot form she was always meant to have. But even with the call of Cybertron burning with desire in her spark, she could not help but look back with longing on the world she was about to leave behind.

The bodies of unconscious (and maybe dead) Decepticons lied strewn about the stone floor, burns and blisters spanning the vast majority of their scaly bodies. The hallways that lead to Marchosais' prison burned with dark energy, most of it directed towards his anger of not seeing the fight end. The world beyond the cave became peaceful once more. The battle had lasted long into the night, as Cylinder could see the sun rising in the young sky. She did not even feel tired.

The Aerialbot thought about the world she was leaving, the dragons she would miss. Acid, Serina, who may or may not have been alive, Leviathan, and many, many more. Even with the threat gone, the blue femme still felt a strange attachment to this world, as though she knew this was not the end. The Voice, both the good and the bad, felt the same way.

"Cyl, come on," Rodimus' weary voice called from inside the portal. "I don't want this thing to close on us."

Cylinder lowered her head in silence. What was her excuse? Maybe she was not ready to leave. Maybe there was something else she was still needed for there. The blue Autobot picked up the unbroken shard, the last remaining piece of the Blue Energon. This crystal, this one crystal, was the only sign of hope for this world. This was far from being over – that much she could tell.

Answering Rodimus' impatient call, Cylinder turned, "I can't leave them," she stated. "I can't leave them behind, especially with the Decepticons still here."

"Cylinder," Rodimus started, "Even if they are here, they're practically powerless without their weapons. You have the Dragon Stone, so they can't free Marchosias. If we leave them here, we won't ever have to worry about the Decepticons again. Don't you want that?"

"Do I want to see a whole other race destroyed because of our selfishness? You saw what they did to Acid, heard what they did to Serina, and Primus only knows what they'll do once they're up and about again." Cylinder stood firm and strong before the smaller mech. Her stubbornness was hard to beat sometimes.

"Look," Rodimus attempted to compromise. "Right now, we're not in the best position for this. Please, Cyl, if we just leave now, I can promise you that we'll return and make sure this ends. But for now, please, just come home."

Cylinder continued to stare at him, "Promise?" she asked in the most youthful and innocent speech possible.

"Promise," he repeated.

Clutching the Energon, the Dragon Stone still with her, Cylinder walked forward to help the Prime through the portal. With one last look, she turned, making a statement that she would force herself to keep. "I'll be back. This doesn't end here. I can promise you that much."

Cylinder thought about the Realms, how closely related their situation was to her own. Cybertron, like the Dragon Realms, had always faced the threat of darkness, even if it was not physically there. It was almost like a Shadow realm, a parallel universe to Cybertron's own. The dark energy cried in disdain as the portal closed behind the two Autobots. The battle was won, but not the new war that was slowly emerging from the shadows.


	11. Epilogue - We All Start Somewhere

Epilogue – We All Start Somewhere

The return to Cybertron was not as pleasant as Cylinder hoped it would be. Instead, both she and Rodimus were showered with a volley of questions from a panicking Blurr, an annoyed Springer, a concerned First Aid, and a very displeased Ultra Magnus.

Upon seeing Rodimus' injuries, First Aid rushed the Autobot leader to the medical ward, welding torch in hand, and demanding he know how and why the young mech had gotten this. Rodimus' best excuse was an "accident," which came from the clever thinking of the blue Aerialbot femme with him.

Apparently, Rodimus and Cylinder had been gone far longer than they expected. Five days. Five days they had been off the Cybertronian tracking grid, causing much panic throughout Iacon. At least now they knew that time moved far slower in the Dragon Realms than it did on Cybertron.

Cylinder had returned to her lab. Her great heroism was over. It was time to go back to her life. But, thanks to some encouragement from the new conscience that had found its way into her processor, the femme had found herself spending time on the surface of the planet more and more often.

The young Aerialbot stood out in the open air. Cool breezes drifted against her blue and gold armor. She shivered, even though Cybertronians could not feel the cold. The stars above her beamed down and reflected off the surface of the old, metallic world. The light of Iacon shined behind her. It was dark, like most days and nights on Cybertron. Cylinder thought of how lonely one could feel out here. But on this night, a visitor accompanied her.

Rodimus' bright colors easily gave him away in the darkness. A small cheerful, yet cautious smile had found its way onto his face. "Hey," he whispered, though there was no one else around to hear.

"Hey," came the flat response. Cylinder turned to acknowledge her leader before facing the dark and seemingly empty sky once more.

After a few days in the medical ward, Rodimus was already back on his feet and working again. The only evidence of any wound was the tight seal that supported his midsection. He would have it for a few weeks. But even the slightest notion of pain on his face had been replaced with his usual bright and dazzling smile.

"How are you feeling?" the Hornet asked, optics still trained on the blackness of space. Sometimes her focus was hard to break.

"Fine . . . actually, great. I got a nice upgrade – look," Rodimus pulled from his subspace a new weapon. Or rather, an addition to something he already had. On his blaster, a small cartridge sat attached to his barrel. A sharp click rang in Cylinder's audios as a sharpened knife unsheathed itself. "Now I can be like you," the young Prime chuckled.

Cylinder shook her head with a slight smile. Sometimes, a good laugh was something she needed to clear her head. "Close enough, I guess."

The next few moments were spent in silence. The only sounds both Autobots could hear were the roadways filled with ground-based Autobots in the distance. Everything else was silent. The breeze pushed gently against their armor, working its way deep into wires and teasing the circuits. Rodimus shuddered.

But the silence began to get to him. The red mech could never stay quiet for long. "Cyl, you . . . you didn't say anything about the Dragon Realms, did you?"

"Why would I? Did you say something?"

"No, but you're sure you didn't say anything, right?"

" . . . No one would believe me," Cylinder concluded.

"Why do I feel like it would be the same for me?" he asked, turning towards the blue Aerialbot.

"Well, think about it," she started, focusing on him, "If I told you that I had turned into a dragon, would you believe me?"

Rodimus considered Cylinder's point for a moment. "Probably not. In fact, I'm sure some 'bots would want to rush you to the psyche ward."

"'Bots already want to rush me to the psyche ward," she muttered. The Voice laughed at her statement. She was not crazy, like everyone else thought. But she was also far from a stable condition of any kind. Not many could say they had a voice, two voices, in their head and still be labeled as perfectly sane.

After another moment passed by with neither he nor she uttering any words, Rodimus spoke, "So, we should just keep this to ourselves, then?"

Cylinder considered it, and nodded, "Yeah. Just promise me that you can keep a secret."

"I'll do my best," he laughed. A silent commlink beeped over Rodimus' processor, but it was not Cylinder's. Ultra Magnus had been rather furious lately. With the Autobot leader's disappearance, the second in command had been waist-deep in work, among things. After a short, heated conversation, Rodimus turned to Cylinder and gave his flattest, most unimpressed sigh.

"I have to go."

Cylinder looked behind her at the entrance to Cybertron's lower levels, " I guess I should head back for a recharge myself."

"Night, Cyl," Rodimus laughed.

"Good night," she returned.

"Oh, and Cyl!" he called back. The femme acknowledged. "I'm not breaking my promises! You watch, we'll go back, and we'll do whatever it takes to keep us from starting another uprising."

"I'm holding you to it," she smiled. After the Autobot leader disappeared into Iacon Tower, Cylinder turned on her heel and proceeded to her lab. She thought about Rodimus. The mech she once could not stand because of his complaining, whining, had finally begun to mature. She had witnessed it firsthand after he had received his injuries and still followed her all the way to the scorched earth. That alone showed true courage.

Upon reaching her lab, the Aerialbot sat down in the nearest chair and let her thoughts circulate, like they always did. But after her adventure, down time was really something she needed at the moment.

The more she thought about it, the more she realized that everything would be okay. The voice, the _good_ voice seemed to agree. As she listened to its words, she began to understand what it was that was speaking to her. The only one that had ever vowed to look after her. She smiled, and thanked him. Only Prowl could be that sneaky and get away with it. He was just unfortunate that Cylinder could always remember voices so well.

However, even with his guidance and almost infinite words of wisdom, the Voice, the demon, still remained, and it was nowhere near done with Cylinder. The femme took out the Dragon stone and looked at it, taking in every angle and dimension of its rough, burned, and cracked surface.

"I _will _go back," she promised. Still, even with her words, Cylinder knew there would be obstacles. There would be challenges that she would face. And as Prowl had put it, they would make her question everything she once knew. But she was prepared. Nothing she could do or say could change that.

Still clutching the Dragon Stone, Cylinder tilted her head back and slowly switched off her optics, letting the voices inside her processor call to her, compel her to listen to one and not the other.

_I'm coming for you._


	12. Credits

I would like to thank you for reading the first book in the TFS series! This story has been in the making for over four years, and thanks to my best friend, , or Wolfie, the first book has been finished and the second on is currently underway!

All of the dragons and Cylinder that have appeared in this story belong to Wolfie and me. This has nothing to do with the awesome Legend of Spyro series, but it was the main inspiration for it.

I do not own Transformers except for my own OCs. Used without permission and credit is given to respectful owners. Transformers and all related logos © Hasbro/Takara Tomy. All rights reserved.

My Characters and things created by me:

Cylinder, Acid, Serina, Vesuvius, Marchosias, Leviathan, elements created, anything in the Dragons Realms, the Dragon Stone, Blue Energon

Wolfie's Characters and things created by her:

Silver, Coldfang, Whitetip, Frost Dragons, Galactic Dragons, Cistor

Complete list of TFS elements:

Elements/Guardians (key at bottom)

Fire  
Blue Fire  
%White Fire  
^Ash  
^Gas  
Neon  
/Magma - ? ... Vesuvius  
^Acid - ? ... Acid  
Inferno  
Fire Storm

Ice  
^Water - ? ... Leviathan  
Bubble  
Storm  
#Frost - ? ... Whitetip ... Gladen  
^Hurricane  
Snowstorm

Earth  
%Emerald  
~ Emerald Ice  
~ Emerald Shards  
~ Emerald Fire  
^Amber - Glacier (Basilisk)  
Earthquake  
^Sludge - ? ... Serina  
^Sand  
%Steel  
/Dust  
%Crystal

Electricity  
%^Light  
%Electric Storm  
Thunder  
/Laser  
^Plasma

%Galactic - ? ... Coldfang/Cistor ... Silver *  
%Spirit  
^Time  
%Aurora  
%Godly  
%Celestial  
Lunar  
^Solar  
Wind

Darkness - Marchosias  
Fear  
Poison  
Shadow  
~ ^Shadow Claw  
Nightmare  
Blood  
Tornado  
/Sound  
Chaos  
%Black Hole  
^Blight

%Shadow Fire  
%Poison Bubble  
%^Yin Yang - Stratosphere  
%Shadow Ice  
^Dark Electricity  
%Blue Electric Fire

#Basilisks - Marchosias ... Roenel ... Jëra  
#Dark Forces - Marchosias  
~Decepticons - Galvatron ... Cyclonus/Scourge ... Starscream  
~Dragons - Marchosias  
~"Ground Creatures" - ?  
#Dragon Realms (Syandemel) - ? ... Coldfang ... Silver  
~*Galactic - ? ... Coldfang ... Silver  
~Fire - ?  
~Ice - ?  
~Earth - ?  
~Electricity - ?  
~#Darkness - Marchosias

/ = deceased/ extinct element  
* = head elemental leader  
? = unknown  
... = succeeded by  
# = tribe (no guardian leader)  
~ = subgroup  
^ = endangered species  
% = rare element

Once again, thank you so much for everything! See you in Transformers: Shadow - Book 2 - The Dragon Stone!


End file.
